He had been stuck for more than three hours, one arm bent underneath his chest, the other forced backward. He. Then John fell silent, and his breathing slowed. The rainbow headlamp bounced off. He thanks you for reading his content. Shed been stuck once, when she curled into a ball to turn around and found herself unable to move her legs. The workers rescue an injured Aaron, who struggles to get back to the cave, distraught over another failure and the loss of his new friend. On Dec. 1, 2009 the countys bomb squad entered Nutty Putty to place explosive charges around the opening of the passageway in which Jones remained trapped. As he takes the baby from his cradle and exits the cave, the boy is born at a hospital and is placed into Emily's arms, who happily announces that she has named him after John. Jones stopped responding to the rescue team late that night. Salt Lake County crews brought a telecom, a set of two radios that transmitted by way of a cable line. Ever since the very beginning, ever since I first met Donovan, hes been really comfortable with John continuing to be a part of our family and our lives, especially because of our kids. He left behind his wife, who was pregnant, and another child. Back in the cave, each new pulley helped inch John out of his dark prison. John oscillated between calm, coherent conversation to helplessly thrashing his legs in sheer panic. Other cavers exploring this hole had found that only the nimblest of contortionists could navigate its tight corkscrew of rock. They split up, wriggling into alcoves and passages to look for it. The bereaved wife since went on to remarry, and has had two more children with her new husband. Which Animated Disney Movie Should Get A Horror Adaptation Next? The first goal of the rescue teamwas to get John into a situation that would minimize strain onhis heart and lungs. When he dove into "Bob's Push," John went head first into the18" x 10"section, which officials later described as a"L-shaped pinpoint." While talking with Aaron again, they each realize they both served Latter Day Saints missions in Spanish speaking countries. Emily would have no cemetery to take her children to. With each tug, he moved a little farther. There are very few studies about the long-term effects of being upside down, but Murdock thought John might have eight to 10 hours to live. Despite some of the horrendous comments, others have been quick to defend Emily and her family. Rescuers had spent 27 hours trying to save John. But no one will ever go in the cave again. Eventually, he had come home to Utah with his wife Emily and 13-months-old daughter for the Thanksgiving holiday and to share the good news that another baby is expected next June. Two days before Thanksgiving, on Nov. 24, 2009, Jones entered Nutty Putty Cave with 11 other people. After becoming stuck in a hole 18 inches wide and 150 feet underground, rescue crews worked frantically and heroically to free him to get him home to his loving wife, Emily. Only her headlamp lighted the caves absolute darkness; the only sounds were those the rescuers made. John, a devout Mormon, had connected with several of the volunteers who had tried to free him through a shared faith. John Edward Jones passed away while spelunking in the Nutty Putty Cave of Utah on November 24th, 2009. These experiences are not shown in the film and Jones-Sanchez says they are not things she would share in detail in a movie or a newspaper article because they are special. The reply seemed to come from the other end of a long hallway. I just imagined him being really tired and scared.. John Jones and his fellow spelunkers, including his brother Josh,had experience with caving, though this was John's first time at Nutty Putty. Emily has recently spoken about the online harassment she and her family continue to face after continuing on with their lives following her husbands death. His older brother was helpless in a dark hole. It usually does come up, she says. Landon Henneman as Aaron, a veteran rescue worker who is distraught over past rescues that have ended tragically. Its an open wound.. Unfortunately, John's position made it challenging forlarge equipment toget near him. ", Once it was clear that Jones couldn't escape on his own or with help of his fellow cavers, authorities became involved. To make that phone call on Thanksgiving morning to a family that is hopeful you will be bringing their son out and theyll get some closure, it wasnt an easy phone call to make, he said. It's a story many people remember because of the tragic way in which he died. [1] Discovery and exploration [ edit] "Its never been hard to remember John," she said. "You may not agree with her choices but you dont pay her bills, feed her kids or mow her grass John loved her and she loved him, so just maybe he sent someone to help her get through it Its not easy to go through life on a good day so give it up I hope she is every bit happy and blessed and the same to her beautiful children.". Get more details on the movie's Facebook pageor at LastDescent.com. . With fluids pooling dangerously in his head and lungs, the shock of the injury could kill him. Save me for my wife and kids, John said. John's position in the cave was problematic from the outset. We all were afraid that this movie would just be a sad story, Jones-Sanchez said. Called The Last Descent (see above), it gives you an accurate glimpse of Johns ordeal and what it feels like to be trapped in the most narrow of cave passageways when claustrophobia and then hopelessness set in. Johns faith would connect him with many of the rescuers who crawled through the dark to reach him. Losing someone is hard enough and going through pregnancy on your own [and] having to look at those kids every day knowing what happened to their dad. John falls asleep and has a vision of his daughter in a field, but with an older man wearing grey clothing, whom he has seen before in hallucinations, after which he wakes up and suffers a panic attack. Nutty Putty Cave Natti Patti Hydrothermal Cave was discovered in 1960 by caver Dale Green and is a system of narrow passages just over 400 meters (1355ft) long and up to 44 meters (145ft) deep. The rescuers came to a horrible realization: The angle of the tunnel meant they couldnt bend Johns body backward without likely breaking his legs. Its never been hard to remember John. John was by then attending medical school in Virginia, where he lived with his wife, Emily, and 1-year-old daughter, Lizzie. John Edward Jones was the last man to explore the Nutty Putty Cave. Closest to John, the rope went through a natural arch in the wall just above the crack where he was trapped. He would be hurt badly, but he could hug Emily. He wore a rainbow-colored, 1970s-style caving headlamp his father had bought for the family trips of his childhood. Housewife Betty thinks she can't be divorced by her rich lawyer husband Dan without her consent. They had medicine ready to give John intravenously immediately after they freed him. But rescuers finally had the power to pull him out. And Johns body lifted out of the crevice. John loves the outdoors; he loves Utah; he loves wide open space, said Emily. Inside The Gruesome Death Of Bonnie And Clyde At The Hands Of A Trigger-Happy Posse. It had been years since John was in any cave. We had two rescues within about a week of each other about four years earlier. Emily mourns at the entrance, and is able to speak with John one last time. John Jones died in Nutty Putty Cave Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2009. I love you! Each persons grief is as unique and personal as their life, but weve compiled a few suggestions that we hope can help you as you comfort the ones you love. But when he reached the narrow crevice trapping 26-year-old John Jones in Utah County's Nutty Putty Cave, he had to fight back tears. Emily wanted to serve a church mission and had been called to Madagascar. or superseded by additional information. [1] It is based on the 2009 rescue attempt of John Edward Jones in Nutty Putty Cave, west of Utah Lake. The Nubian Pyramids Of Sudan Are Just As Impressive As Those In Egypt So Why Aren't They As Well-Known? I reviewed the whole mission, wishing wed have done this tiny detail differently or done that a little sooner. Josh Powell was, at the least, aware of the cave. The Utah County Sheriffs Office set up a command center and rescue leaders ran through idea after idea. Its just that I know, Emily said. John knew he was now just about stuck and had no room to turn around. Patty Jo Engels. They sang the hymn How Firm a Foundation., Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed, For I am thy God and will still give thee aid; Ill strengthen and help thee, and cause thee to stand Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.. Most of the passages were dangerously narrow, even at the entrance, where warning signs had been placed. Saddened, John goes back to the cave. Maybe it's because as people learned more about the life of John Jones and his response to a life or death situation, they wanted to be better. John left behind his wife, Emily Jones Sanchez, and their two children. Tears streamed down the rescuer s face as Emily shouted to John from the chaotic surface to the musty, cramped tunnel. Nutty Putty is a hydrothermal cave known for its tight twists and crawl spaces; management has occasionally closed this cave off to the public due to its dangerous conditions. AND POSTING ABOUT YOU," one user wrote on a post Emily shared on 6 March, 2020. A soft-spoken man, Hodgson says he doesnt usually make a promise he cant keep. It was November 24, 2009, a few days before Thanksgiving. He looked fine. Knowing help was on the way steeled Josh for another trip down the tunnel to take the friends place. He assures John that everything will be all right, and promises him that he'll get out of the cave. His body was in bent position, and there was a lip of rock that "basically captured the center part of his body. Hed crawled through the tunnel and seen John swallowed by the rock. She couldnt hear her group. Now. Some considered Nutty Putty a "beginner's cave,"but it had several narrow spaces where people had previously gotten stuck. He was actually beyond that in an unnamed, really unexplored part of the cave.. How are you doing?. Susie had been moving into a new house, but dropped everything when her rescue pager went off just after 9 p.m. She drove her Toyota 4Runner, purchased with an eye toward rescues, around the southern end of Utah Lake and down the long, dark dirt road leading to the cave. Roundy replays the rescue over and over in his head, even years after the incident. The rescuers invested 3,700 cumulativehours of effort, and stood sidebyside with the family throughout the ordeal. Then it was Dave who was stuck. But removing John after his death would be even harder than it was when he was alive. Just six volunteers had been able to crawl throught he tunnel to reach John, out of a total of 137 rescuers who responded. Back in 2004, two Boy Scouts had nearly lost their lives in separate incidents in the same area of Nutty Putty Cave where John became trapped. Using chisels and axes was also possibilities, but it took hours to chipaway small amounts of rock. He was stuck for over 25 hours, and because of the pressure his body was under and the position he was in, sadly couldn't be safely rescued. At the age of 26, he was studying medicine at the University of Virginia. loosing someone is hard enough and going through a pregnancy on ur own having to look at those kids everyday knowing what happened to their dad. Uniformed deputies remained at the opening of the cave 24-hours a day from the night of Jones death until Nutty Puttys permanent closure the following week. She is the mother of Lizzie (7) and John (6), as well as Emerson (2). They never recovered his body, which remains inside to this day, for fear of more deaths that might result from such an operation. OK, John. Instead, Brandon Kowallis, another member of Utah Cave Rescue whod just arrived at Nutty Putty Cave, crawled into the tunnel to take his place. ", A third user said: "Just saw the movie of the story of John. Crawling on her belly, Susie Motola inched her way through a cramped limestone tunnel that wound through the earth like the path of a worm. Then his feet hit the low ceiling. It sucks; Im upside down. A medical student from the University of Virginia, John Edward Jones explored the Nutty Putty Cave in November 2009. Explorer Kory Kowallis in the crawl to the aptly named Scout Trap passage in Nutty Putty Cave. Authorities creditedJohn's kind and caring family with helping the rescuers, as they experienced the emotional roller coaster of the experience. bodies of climbers left behind on Mount Everest. He tried to exhale the air in his chest so that he could fit through a space that was barely 10 inches across and 18 inches high, about the size of the opening of a clothes dryer. It had only reopened under an online reservation system managed by a local caving organization in early 2009. Now sealed up, Nutty Putty Cave serves as a natural memorial and gravesite to John Edward Jones. She joked that she would have a story to tell his wife and asked if hed like to get some pancakes when they got him out. "There is incredible hope out there for us. Shortly after he arrived, rescue crews got a set of heavy-duty air chisels and drills they would use to rebuild a pulley system designed to pull John out of the fissure. (Al Hartmann | The Salt Lake Tribune) Crews work to rescue John Jones of Stansbury Park from the Nutty Putty Cave near Elberta in November of 2009. Yet spelunkers of all ages are always keen to navigate the crevice, and Jones was no exception. The rescue team could not reach Johns body, either, so the cave was closed off and sealed around his body, where it is to this day a memorial for the father of two. Jones, 26, had grown up in Utah but was attending medical school at the University of Virginia in 2009 when he returned home with his pregnant wife and 14-month-old daughter for Thanksgiving. Susie went in first and reached John at 12:30 a.m. The film had a limited release in Arizona, Utah and Idaho on September 16, 2016. Their second child was due in June. He asked John to suck his stomach in, but he didnt respond. Another comment reads: "Is that John on ur profile picture? So he kept going , likely thinking he was in the Canal. They both sing "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" in Spanish. Spencer Cannon said. The Last Descent: Directed by Isaac Halasima. He died at the age of 23, leaving behind a wife (Emily), a daughter (Lizzie), and another child that was on the way to be born by June 2010. It took him 15 minutes to crawl out of the crack. He never made it past the entrance. After becoming stuck in a hole 18 inches wide and 150 feet under ground, rescue crews worked frantically and heroically to free him to get him home to his loving wife Emily. Computer files recovered from Powells digital devices by police and obtained by Cold through an open records request included a scanned copy of a postcard showing the interior of Timpanogos Cave National Monument in Utahs Wasatch Mountains. (Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) The entrance to the Nutty Putty cave on Friday, November 27, 2009. minutes. They are picked up by John's brother Josh, who tells him that the Nutty Putty Cave has been opened after having been closed before. The best plan they had was to use a system of pulleys and ropes to try to free John from his perilously tight spot. Having a film made about it. He wanted to find a tight passage. As John Jones's dad, Leon, notes, this story is not one of death, but of eternal life and of eternal families. The human body is designed to walk upright, and the heart works with the force of gravity not against it. One arm was pinned underneath him , the other forced backward by an outcropping of rock. In the meantime, the team worked to solve the friction problem by rigging a pulley system anchored to the tunnels walls with a series of climbing cams anchors designed to fit quickly and tightly into rock. So they agreed. Then the world exploded in a blast of pain. John Jones, left, and his wife, Emily Dawn Jones. What did they mean, they couldnt get his body out? He spent the remainder of his life surrounded by rock, 150 feet below the surfaceof the Earth, unable to free himself from its clutches. Emily Jones-Sanchez is photographed with her husband, Donovan, and children, Lizzie, John and Emerson. Atthis point,John told Josh,"Go get 'em, brother. In an interview with Deseret News, Emily spoke out against the trolling and stood behind her new husband, explaining that it's 'never been hard to talk about John' to her second spouse Donovan Sanchez. Josh tried to pull at his brothers calves to no avail. He picked up the phone to tell the family his teams wouldnt be able to get Johns body out of the cave. Rescuers believe John sucked in his chest to investigate the fissure, sliding his torso over a lip of rock and down into the 10-inch-wide side of the crevice. After Emily leaves with Josh's car, the two brothers enter the cave. They worked through their grief together, building a healing friendship. It usually does come up, she says. I make it one of my passions and my loves.. A medical student with awife and 2-year-old daughter, Jones was exploring the cave when he suddenly found himself stuck in an almost unreachable crevice 150 feet underground, hanging upside down. Read Part 2 here. Caving made him feel like an explorer finding something truly new in alien depths. This one is very tender still. [3], The film had a limited release but received generally positive reviews, with praise for its direction, acting and cinematography, but received some criticism for its tone and pacing. Another showed John Edward Jones, a man who died in the cave less than two weeks before Susan Powell disappeared. Chadwick Hopson as John Jones, a medical student who gets stuck in an 18-inch wide hole in Nutty Putty Cave. By Lindsay Whitehurst | The Salt Lake Tribune, Why Utahs independent bookstore network is thriving, Utah hydrologic outlook warns of rising waterways due to snowmelt as temperatures heat up, Higher densities may be coming soon to your SLC neighborhood. When he came to, blood was everywhere. That relief evaporated when the rigging failed and Jones dropped back into the same trap from which hed been freed. The first rescue person to arrive was a volunteer named Susie Motola. The answer is beautiful and profound. By then he could see his brother, and dread settled in. Rescuers tried to save him, butafter a long, dramatic, and ultimately unsuccessful rescue attempt, John perished, leaving a wife, a daughter, and an unborn son behind. PG | Drama Watch options Official Trailer In 2009, John Jones explored an un-mapped section of the famous Nutty Putty Cave. Life goes on. [4][5], "Utah filmmaker's 'The Last Descent' retells Nutty Putty cave tragedy", "Powerful 'The Last Descent' searches for hope in the 2009 Nutty Putty Cave tragedy", "Movie review: 'Last Descent' tells story behind a Utah tragedy", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Descent&oldid=1149160162. A pulley system freed the 5-foot-7-inch-tall, 140-pound teen in 2004, but John was bigger, farther down the tunnel, and rescuers could only reach about 6 inches of his legs. He couldnt push himself up. Shortly afterwards, he suffers another panic attack. The entire system starts to fail.". Ryan tried to ready John for what was about to happen. "JOHN WAS BETTER ! John wakes up upside down in an 18-inch wide hole and realizes he is completely stuck. He drilled a second hole and pushed the pulley in. However, as John is starting to get pulled out, one of the drills come undone, making dirt explode in all directions, and resulting in John falling back in the hole. It worked to get Jones past the fishhook of the rock lip, causing some relief on the afternoon of Nov. 25. On 24 November, 2009, John Edward Jones tragically passed away while exploring a hydrothermal cave in Utah known as 'Nutty Putty cave'. I can say that I know for sure, without a doubt, I know there is life after death, Jones-Sanchez said. The water flowed down his arm, and Susie hoped some of it might reach his mouth. In 2009, John Jones explored an unmapped section of the famous Nutty Putty Cave. Jones-Sanchez, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, says that some of the more powerful, faith-building experiences have come in the years since John passed away. Rescue commanders on the surface also knew how much thoughts of his family helped John in his dark prison. Now at the age of 26, John was in the prime of his life, who was married and was attending medical school in Virginia at the same time. Emily had always known her husband of 3 1/2 years to be persistent and patient. Among the smallest of the dedicated band of search-and-rescue volunteers in rugged Utah County, Susie couldnt carry the biggest packs and she got cold faster. Jones-Sanchez currently lives in Peoria, Illinois, where she and her current husband, Donovan Sanchez, moved to be closer to her parents. However, despite it being over 10 years since John passed away, the mother has faced continuous online abuse on her Facebook page. A good one. The brothers made small talk to take their minds out of the cave. A tall, broad-shouldered man in his 50s with buzzed hair and a bristle-brush mustache introduced himself as one of the on-scene commanders. There are many trees mentioned in the scriptures that have spiritual lessons we can learn from. The two talked about their missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and spoke Spanish together -- Ryan had served a Spanish-speaking mission in Texas, John in Ecuador. His family thanked rescuers for their help even despite the horrible news. John inched upward. And at six feet tall and 200 pounds, he wasnt the little kid he used to be. But he smiled. deductible, Report a missed paper by emailingsubscribe@sltrib.comor calling801-237-2900, For e-edition questions or comments, contact customer support801-237-2900or emailsubscribe@sltrib.com. And now, with John Edward Jones trapped inside the cave, time was running out. Its not that I believe because its the only thing that gets me through. Each trip into the tunnel to pass a piece of gear took nearly an hour. And the cams anchoring the pulleys were slipping from their uncertain places in the weak calcite. Halasima, a Utah native, only once went to Nutty Putty Cave. But the cave would become a special place for her family. But those moments were why she became a caver. If the friction was still too great, theyd add another pulley. All Rights Reserved, Nutty Putty Cave accident victims widow: I know there is life after death, John Jones died in a cave, but his widow emerged from the darkness, The Last Descent tells the emotional story of John Jones 7 years after Nutty Putty Cave death, Man trapped in Utah Countys Nutty Putty cave dies. Its never been hard to talk about John, she said. He didnt even have room to wriggle back out the way hed come. Id gone in it, in the front, and kind of said, Thats it, thats enough.'. 6 comes in Mexico; BYU clinches final WCC title, Twitter to allow publishers to charge users on a per article basis starting May, Wrongfully convicted Kansas man to get $7.5M payment. His wife, Emily Jones Sanchez, and their two children were left behind. He waited two months until she was sure. Shaun Roundy, one of the rescuers on the scene, explained the difficulties facing anyone, even experienced spelunkers, who went into Nutty Putty Cave. The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity and contributions are tax And some people even said, Weve been considering divorce and after hearing about your loss and everything youve been through, its really just put life in perspective for us and weve recommitted to loving each other better and to our marriage and to our family. And I think tragedy does often put life into perspective for us., It is the opportunity to share this perspective that motivated Jones-Sanchez and her late husbands family, despite their initial hesitance, to allow his story to be told in a film that will open in theaters this weekend titled, The Last Descent.". Aaron, Susie and other workers plan to pull John out of the hole by drilling pulleys into the walls and hooking the ropes to his feet. "Ever since the very beginning, ever since I first met Donovan, hes been really comfortable with John continuing to be a part of our family and our lives, especially because of our kids. so just maybe he sent someone to help her get through it its not easy to go through life on a good day so give it up i hope she is every bit happy and blessed and the same to her beautiful children. Although Jones' death is the first known fatality since cavers began exploring Nutty Putty's narrow passageways in the 1960s, rescuers have been called to the cave five times in the last 10 years. Why did you guys put me here? John replied. It was their first time in Nutty Putty and a throwback to childhood family caving outings. Jones-Sanchez gives her husband a great deal of the credit for this. If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact Cruse Bereavement Care via their national helpline on 0808 808 1677. Ryan was one of about two dozen rescuers who went to Johns funeral. I just know that hes still watching out for us, that our family is still a family.. Once John had been declared dead, there were discussions about how do we get him out? There were some rather distasteful discussions as well, things that nobody really wanted to do, Cannon said. One user wrote: "I hope she does not read these comments and I hope none of you have to go through what she has in her life. On Nov. 26, he had to break his promise again. At the top, Dave pulled Utah County sheriffs Lt. Tom Hodgson aside. Tell Lizzie I love her! It changes the way you live. It breaks my heart how easily people focus on happiness in this earthly life instead of holding on and wait to be re-united.". Members of Jones party worked their way back out of Nutty Putty to the top of Blowhole Hill, where they were able to use a cellphone to call for help. Jones Family Photo 8 of 15 An unidentified rescue worker, works near John Jones in the Nutty Putty Cave, Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2009. On 24 November, 2009, John Edward Jones . John hadn't gone into a cave in years when the two brothers met for Thanksgiving at their parents' Stansbury Park home. The cave rescue was supposed to be something she could do. John Jones began to explore the "Birth Canal" section, however something went wrong and he ended up in another area, "Bob's Push", 100 feet below the surface of the cave. The fact that her husband, John Jones, died after getting trapped in a Utah cave in 2009 is not the first thing Emily Jones-Sanchez brings up when she meets new friends. Still, she was absolutely sure he was going to be all right. Cannon said given the fact Susan Powell was seen alive after the concrete plug was poured, it is not possible for her body to also be entombed with John Jones. Seeing his feet and seeing how swallowed he was by the rock, thats when I knew it was serious. Josh said. All John and Josh, both devout Mormons, could do at this point was pray. He was a medical student at the University of Virginia who was married to a woman named Emily and had a daughter named Lizzie, with a second child on the way to be born in June of 2010. John Jones smiles at his wedding in 2006, at age 23. Enter your email to receive updates on our LDS Living content, 2022 LDS Living A Division of Deseret Book Company, 6 temple dresses + accessories Latter-day Saint women will love, 8 meaningful gifts for those who are grieving, 3 scripture stories that may inspire you to be a little more tree. When the pulley system was ?nished, it was 4 p.m. on Nov. 25, and John had been trapped for 19 hours. Had John lived, Ryan thinks they would have been close friends. Her new acquaintances typically tell her they remember hearing her story. John Edward Jones with his wife Emily before the Nutty Putty Cave incident that took his life. Nutty Putty Cave lived up to its reputation on the night of Johns death. Kendrey Flake as Lizzie, John's young daughter. Jacob Omer as Josh Jones, John's brother. Hodgson was there six years ago, when a 16-year-old boy got stuck in the same tunnel that trapped John. John grew up and went to school in St. George, Utah, where he graduated from Dixie High School in 2001. The simple geometry looked impossible. At that point, John had been trapped for three and a half hours. The rope moved. Explorer Emily Vinton Maughen at the entrance of Nutty Putty Cave. The first rescuer to reach John was a woman named Susie Motola, who arrived at about 12:30 AM on November 25. Just wondering, when you die and go to heaven, who will you be with? And while time has passed and they lead a happy life together, Emily and Donovan have also retained Johns memory. Dirty John Season 2: The Betty Broderick Story is set in 1980s. But they were still able to retrieve a body for loved ones. He could watch his babys birth, his daughter grow up. During the evening of November 24,2009, John Jones and a group of fellowcave explorers entered Nutty Putty Cave located near Salt Lake City, UT. Ryan yelled for the teams to lower him, to give him a rest. When the new system -- drilled into the rock -- was finished, the team would inch John up. Ryan Shurtz usually feels at home underground.