A trio of explorers made their way to the Utah cave where spelunker John Edward Jones infamously became stuck and died, and they were surprised to find some heartwarming details.
Jones was an adrenaline junkie who enjoyed cave exploration in his spare time, but when choosing to explore the Nutty Putty cave in the Utah desert in November 2009, he took a wrong turn and got stuck in an unmapped passageway.
The 26-year-old was then left upside down for over 24 hours, in a tourist attraction that had been explored by boy scout troops and college students in the past.
Jones would then go on to suffer the ‘worst death imaginable’, with the experienced caver essentially getting into his own grave.
John Edward Jones sadly died while stuck in the cave (Family Handout)
The six-foot tall explorer was stuck upside down, 400 ft from the cave’s entrance, in an area called ‘the birth canal’, which was just 10 inches by 18 inches wide.
Authorities attempted a rescue mission, trying almost everything to get him out but sadly, it just wasn’t possible. Every time the 26-year-old took a breath, his chest expanded, further wedging him inside the tight space with no chance of escape.
His brother Josh, who entered the cave with him, had no choice but make his way back to the top to get help.
Despite the rescue attempts, the trainee doctor eventually stopped breathing and became unresponsive, with his body remaining in the cave over a decade on.
And now, YouTuber Brandon Kowallis has travelled to Nutty Putty Cave, showing his viewers what it looks like following the 2009 tragedy, with it now being sealed off from the public.
Revealing that he was at the ‘Nutty Putty cave entrance’, the content creator said that he assumed that he was on the cement that was used to seal the cave off.
Panning his camera across the entrance, a plaque in honour of the late medical student can be seen, almost acting as a tombstone as his body lay below.
A wreath can also be seen laying by the entrance, while another plaque reveals a message from his family, asking for visitors to ‘enjoy and respect this sacred space’.
The plaque can be seen paying tribute to the late caver (YouTube/Brandon Kowallis)
Describing his experience in the video description, Kowallis said: “There’s not much to it. It’s a cement-plugged entrance and that’s about it.
“It was nice to read through the memorial plaques though and remember John and his family. This was the first time I’d been up there since the rescue.”
A film based on Jones’ story was made in 2016, titled The Last Descent, starring Chadwick Hopson Jones as John, alongside Jacob Omer as Josh.
If you’ve ever wondered what was running through the mind of John Edward Jones while he was trapped in the Nutty Putty Cave, this claustrophobia-inducing footage will give you a good idea.
Thankfully, no one will ever have to go through an ordeal like the 26-year-old explorer did, as the entrance points to the tourist attraction in the US state of Utah were permanently sealed following the tragedy in December 2009.
Despite the fact he suffered one of the ‘worst death’s imaginable‘ inside the cave, it hasn’t stopped people from being curious about the place – but fortunately, we can take a look at what John saw from a safe distance.
Before the fatal incident which spelled the end of the Nutty Putty Cave, a gang of gutsy blokes headed inside the popular site which used to welcome thousands of amateurs and professionals each year.
The grainy footage, originally shot in 2005, was uploaded to the YouTube page ‘CBG’ nine years ago to give people an idea of just how much of a tight squeeze it is – especially in the ‘birth canal’, which is where John fatefully headed.
For those who don’t know, the father-of-one headed inside the cave system with his brother Josh and a few pals, before they split off into two groups.
He was keen to find the birth canal, but ended up taking a wrong turn and entered an unmapped section of the cave.
John is said to have essentially ‘crawled into his own grave‘ when he ventured into this area, as the six foot tall and 200lbs caver suddenly became pinned between rocks while upside down.
He was wedged around 400ft from the cave’s entrance with no way to turn around, while one arm rested above his head and the other dangled down by his side – prompting a huge rescue mission.
John never made it back out of the Nutty Putty cave (Family Handout)
With each breath the medical student took, the more trapped he became, as his chest expanded.
Despite a huge rescue operation, John – who considered himself an experienced caver – could not be freed, and he was pronounced dead on 25 November, 2009, after he suffered a cardiac arrest.
It was deemed far to dangerous to try and retrieve his body, prompting his family and the landowner to come to an agreement to permanently close the cave with John still inside.
The Nutty Putty Cave became a memorial to John, while the entrance hole was filled with concrete to prevent further access – while the explorer’s story lives on as a cautionary tale to cavers around the world.
But back in 2005, it was still open to the public and the group managed to capture eerie footage of what would later become John’s final resting place.
One caver pointed out how tight the entrance was (YouTube/CBG)
Although they admitted they ‘didn’t have the best cameras’, the video still managed to capture the narrowness of the cave system’s passageways – and the lads realised just how confined it was as soon as they entered it.
As the camera is pointed down an ominous hole which sits among the barren landscape, one of the men who had already climbed inside looks up and says to his pal: “Dude, you’re gonna look at this and be like ‘Holy crap, can I fit through this small hole?'”
Their visibility immediately took a nosedive as soon as they gained access to the Nutty Putty cave, with the group explaining it was extremely humid inside.
One remarked that the ceiling was ‘dripping’, while the others began to navigate through the darkness.
“It’s surprisingly wet in here, but it’s so…muddy,” one said.
“That’s why it’s the Nutty Putty cave,” another responded – and he was bang on, as it literally got it’s name from the soft, putty-like clay found in some of its passages.
The lads chillingly joked about how dangerous it was down there (YouTube/CBG)
Chillingly, the friends later began to joke about how difficult a rescue operation would be.
As they started to abseil down a small hole with a rope, one of the men said: “Can you imagine if one of these rocks just let loose, it would just kill you so quickly.
“Or if there’s an earthquake and everything collapsed…smash you like a pancake. There’d be nothing left of you. And there’s no way they could get back down here and dig through all this, we’re so far down.”
But in the same breath, they added: “This is beautiful, absolutely beautiful.”
Another asked their mates to remind them ‘why they brought a knife’ for the risky excursion, to which one of his pals replied: “Incase it’s one of those cliffhanger situations where you got to cut yourself free to save the life of your friend above you. Or, to cut yourself free so he can die and you don’t.”
The cavers thankfully all made it out okay and in the process, they captured some footage which reminds us all why the Nutty Putty cave is best left closed.
One viewer wrote: “Little did they know they were making some of the only footage that will ever be seen of the inside of the Nutty Putty cave system. RIP John Edward Jones.”
Another remarked: “Seeing footage of inside the cave just a few years before John died in there is really eerie.”
A third commented: “Creepy how they talk about being buried there… in light of what happened a few years later to the poor guy who met exactly that fate.”
A fourth added: “It’s crazy seeing that hole that led down to this nightmare. Interesting seeing what it was like. It’s a miracle more didn’t die in this cave.”
The incident where a man suffered a horrific death while stuck inside the infamous Nutty Putty cave has been made into a film, available to watch for free.
Back in 2009, spelunker John Edward Jones decided to explore the infamous Nutty Putty Cave in Utah, USA, and suffered ‘one of the worst deaths imaginable‘ inside the former tourist attraction.
Located southwest of Utah Lake and 55 miles from Salt Lake City, John chose to enter and explore the Nutty Putty Cave on 24 November 2009 with some relatives.
Little did he know, it would be the last thing he’d ever do.
The father and medical student said that he was an experienced caver/spelunker, but ended up wedging himself ‘into his own grave‘ 15 years ago.
Rescue teams were soon called, with footage of their attempts captured and broadcasted on the news, revealing how desperate the situation was.
John’s last words were also heard by authorities as they tried to get him out, before his family made the decision to permanently close the cave with the caver’s body inside, as he was pronounced dead the following day after a cardiac arrest.
It then became too dangerous to retrieve his body after this. The closed cave is now a memorial to Jones as the entrance hole was filled with concrete to close it off from the public, for good.
But it seems that there’s a way to view these events in the form of a film, titled The Last Descent (trailer above).
John never made it out of Nutty Putty Cave (Family Handout)
The 2016 title was promoted with John’s real-life wife at the time, saying that she hopes that viewers come away with ‘a commitment to love better’ and with ‘faith that God has a plan’.
This drama title stars the likes Chadwick Hopson as John Jones, Alexis “Lexy” Johnson as Emily Jones, John’s wife, and Landon Henneman as a veteran rescue worker, who is meant to represent all the workers that worked with John in real life.
Scenes in the trailer depict John going through flashbacks and flash forwards in his life while being stuck in the 18-inch-wide hole, as well as the emotions running through his loved ones.
John was stuck in the cave for 27-28 hours (Samuel Goldwyn Films)
The Last Descent did not have a wide release, instead only coming out in theatres in the US states of Arizona, Utah and Idaho on September 16, 2016.
Receiving generally positive reviews from critics, the full film is currently available to view on YouTube.
A terrifying image shows the grim reality of a father who suffered the ‘worst death imaginable’.
Spelunker John Edward Jones ventured inside Nutty Putty Cave in Utah, US, with his brother Josh to an area dubbed the ‘birth canal’.
The 26-year-old medical student – who was with three others – went off with his brother Josh to the ‘birth canal’, a tight passageway with a turnaround at the end.
But because part of the cave was still unmapped Jones went through the wrong entrance.
His failed attempt at getting through the ‘birth canal’ meant that he was stuck in a horrific upside down position.
The ‘L-shaped pinpoint’ was only 10 inches across and 18 inches high, as the dad-of-one’s fatal mistake was believing he could fit through.
Unfortunately, each time Jones breathed and his chest expanded, it further wedged him inside the tight space with little chance of escaping.
Family Handout
Despite Josh’s attempt to try and pull him out, Jones only became further wedged in.
The brother had no choice but to leave him behind and crawl to the surface to call for help.
The Utah County Sheriff’s Office later arrived with rescuers on hand in attempt to free Jones.
“It’s very narrow, very awkward, and it’s difficult to get rescuers down there,” rescuer Shawn Roundy informed the media at the time, adding that Jones was located in ‘absolutely the worst spot in the cave’.
Although they tried power tools and a pulley system to try and get him out, the attempts to rescue Jones ultimately failed and he tragically died in the cave, where his body is still said to remain, more than 10 years after the tragedy.
Family Handout
Following his death on Thanksgiving on 24 November, 2009, the location where his body remains has since been declared a hazard and was sealed shut.
A film based on the story of Jones and the attempts to rescue him called The Last Descent was released in 2016 starring Chadwick Hopson Jones as John, alongside Jacob Omer as Josh.
Below is a jarring projection of the position Jones was most likely stuck in:
Jones’ wife, Emily Jones Sanchez, who was pregnant at the time of his death, told Desert News: “I can say that I know for sure, without a doubt, I know there is life after death.
“I know John is still alive. I know because I’ve been able to talk to him since he died, and I’ve had several experiences where the veil has been thin, and I’ve had these sacred moments where I don’t understand everything and my faith is not perfect, but I know he’s out there, and I know there’s life after death.”
The Paria pipeline disaster saw four divers tragically lose their lives after carrying out some maintenance work in the Caribbean.
The four divers – Kazim Ali Jr, Yusuf Henry, Fyzal Kurban and Rishi Nagassar – died at work after being sucked into an oil pipeline on 25 February 2022, off the coast of Trinidad and Tobago.
Fifth diver Christopher Boodram was the only one to survive the freak accident.
The divers were called to work in a hyperbaric chamber (or pressurised chamber) with water being pumped out of it so they could change some nuts and fix a leak.
YouTube channel FatalBreakdown, who provide visual explanation videos of tragic incidents, has since showed what they believe to have happened on that fatal day in 2022.
Watch below:
The video provides animated visuals on how the five divers were working in hyperbaric chamber to fix a water leak.
The YouTuber explains: “The inflatable plug that they were removing was supposed to be separating 12 barrels of oil from the air and ocean water around it.
“In that case, it would have been a matter of routine to remove the plug and proceed with their work plan.
“The air pressure in the habitat would have been pressing down on a heavy column of oil.
“The oil would have been settled level between the two pipe openings at birth five and six. Nothing out of the ordinary.”
However, when they removed an inflated plug using a lever, it created a pressure differential.
A visual on how the four divers lost their lives. (YouTube/@fatal_breakdown)
This caused all five divers to get sucked into the 30-inch-diameter pipeline in Pointe-a-Pierre harbour.
Only Boodram survived the accident by swimming through oil water to a bend in the pipeline, eventually being pulled out by rescuers after being trapped in there for three hours.
The pipeline’s owner, the Paria Fuel Trading Company Limited, has since been accused of gross negligence and corporate manslaughter, according to a report by the Commission of Enquiry (CoE).
The report accused Paria of poor operating procedures and having no rescue team being sent out to the divers.
The five men were trapped inside the oil pipe, with only one being able to make an escape. (TTT News Loop News)
Paria’s terminal operations manager, Collin Piper, said the decision to not provide a rescue team was made to prevent more lives from being lost.
CoE said that the tragedy was caused by the ‘methodology adopted by both Paria and LMCS in removing the content from the pipeline,’ which created a ‘Latent Differential Pressure’ – a vacuum in the pipeline that sucked in the workers.
During his testimony, Boodram said: “Mind you all, in there was like an unbelievable nightmare. Your eyes are burning. Every time you try to open your eyes, it burns.”
Litigation over the incident is still ongoing.
