Privacy Policy. Ben's brother who supposedly died from a stroke, actually died from a drug overdose; according to one pathologist there wasn't the slightest sign of a stroke. A decade later, while on a dive at the same site, Shaw found Dreyer's missing body. All Rights Reserved. The teens, who arrived at the park earlier that morning, had talked with the two divers before the men got into the water, authorities said. Cadaver dogs picked up a scent along the bank of the spring as well as one in the water but when county health departments sampled the water, they found no indication of a spike in bacteria consistent with decomposition. Two tanks known to belong to McDaniel were found near the entrance to the cave. Ben went into Vortex Spring on August 18th, 2010 and was never seen or heard from again. On Valentine's Day of 2000, 9-year-old Asha Degree packed her bags in the middle of On December, 24, 1945, a fire destroyed the Sodder family's home in Fayetteville, West Virginia, Dorothy was harassed relentlessly by a terrifying stalker who ultimately abducted and killed her. The divers who recovered his body believed he was, however. He soon realized that very few divers "in the world" possessed the training and skill to attempt such a dangerous cave diving recovery. Without a body, closure is impossible. Warning: the attached video shows Shaw's personal camera footage from the moments leading up to his death, and they are unpleasant. Through the years, McAniff, of Rhode Island, said he has seen the number of diving deaths decrease while the sport's popularity is on the rise. Dive-related fatalities among tourist and local divers in the northern Croatian littoral (1980-2010). He was descending down towards the cave which starts 300 feet from the cavern. "I know what I'm doing and I barely made it through," he told the Commercial Appeal. As the sun faded on the 19th of August, 2010, Ben walked down the narrow dock and slipped in the clear, warm, water of Vortex Spring. Two other tanks, lacking regulators, were attached to the "talk box" in the outer cavern area, (Piano Room) where the talk box was located at the time. They were eventually able to partially free him using a rope-pulley system. Veteran Cave diver Brett Hemphill believes it was likely a painless death. He had a failed marriage and financial trouble. John left behind his wife Emily and their baby daughter Lizzie. While police had already searched the spring, there were certain passages that they refused to search because it was much too dangerous and they werent experienced enough. Bethesda, MD 20894, Web Policies . [2], Sorenson, who has been described by the Tampa Bay Times as being able to go where other divers cannot,[2] persisted. He has never been seen again. Ben Reymenants, a Belgian cave diver who operates a dive shop in Thailand, was part of the group that first found the boys on Monday, after more than a week of searching. Careers. John decided to try and find the formation known as the Birth Canal, an incredibly narrow vertical passage. [1] Undeterred, the McDaniels increased the award, twice. Discovery Company. [22], Kelly remained comatose, and was eventually placed in hospice care, where he died the following month. Ben did not have the certification required . [4] A reward they offered was rescinded in 2012 after the death of another diver who may have been trying to collect it, vindicating the criticism of the divers who had warned of that possibility and resented the McDaniels' insinuation that those who had searched for their son at great personal risk had not been "brave" enough.[5]. 3) Ed. Unable to load your collection due to an error, Unable to load your delegates due to an error. News, analysis and comment from the Financial Times, the worlds leading global business publication Earlier that day, a diver had had a confrontation with several teenagers on the property about their drinking; they eventually left but may have come back in an attempt to exact revenge. The grim mystery of where Ben is haunts the McDaniels family. Larsa Pippen Is 'In Love' With Marcus Jordan And Swears Dad Michael Is Cool With Their Relationship! [2] That opinion, the Memphis Commercial Appeal later reported, was shared by posters on a scuba diving website, scubaboard.com, who had also met Ben during trips to Vortex Spring. "If I had to guess his son suffered from some horrible narcosis. Replies 39 Views 2,017. Perhaps his body had been secretly removed from the cave before searching began and disposed of on land or it had washed out through the spring's outlet. We were able to hold his hand at some point.". sharing sensitive information, make sure youre on a federal On a hot August night, Ben McDaniel attempted the adventure of a lifetime. Home. He told them he was working on getting certified as an instructor so he could find a job and that he was researching cave diving with an eye toward getting that certification as well. [1], In 2011 Kelly ameliorated the charges against him by pleading no contest. The worst thing that you can do when you realize something is going wrong is to panic. Dave Shaw was determined to bring this missing person's remains back to his family and set out on his final mission in 2005. Members of a specialized cave diving rescue team responded to the scene and found the second diver, also deceased, more than 130 feet below the surface, authorities said. Edd Sorenson (born October 17, 1959) is a technical cave diver known for numerous rescues of lost or trapped divers in the underwater caves of Florida particularly in Vortex Springs and Blue Springs Recreational Park. "He just got himself in a pinch and couldn't find his way back out", said one of the divers who recovered the body. National Library of Medicine One of the divers is believed to have mentioned that he possibly had a leak in his tank.. The . Deon Dreyer was a South African recreational scuba diver who died in Bushman's Hole, or also known as Boesmansgat cave, in South Africa's Northern Cape. The ex-employee managed to escape into the woods but was left so shaken that he moved his family out of town and swore he would never return. It is unknown at this time if all the equipment was working properly, the sheriffs office added. Two days later, it was noticed that Ben's car was still in the . The epidemiology of injury in scuba diving. They are adamant that he wouldnt do something so cruel to them. John Edward Jones, 26, was a medical student and experienced spelunker (someone who explores caves as a hobby) who went cave diving with a group of friends while visiting family in Utah for Thanksgiving in 2009.. On November 24, the group ventured into the Nutty Putty Cave, a popular spelunking spot known for . By Phil Helsel. There were some rather distasteful discussions as well, things that nobody really wanted to do," Sgt Cannon said. New posts Search forums. And no traces of Ben were ever found inside of Vortex Spring.In this video I breakdown the story of what happened before Ben's journey into Vortex Spring. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. These are simply consequences of divers exceeding the limits of their personal training and experience. Diving instruction is offered for all levels; experienced divers come for the underwater wildlife and the cavern, which begins 58 feet (18m) below the surface. The tragedy began with the 1994 death of Deon Dreyer. and our Eduardo Taran, however, was an experienced diver as well as an employee at Vortex Spring. [2], In March 2012, the McDaniels arranged for cadaver dogs to search the area of the springs again, but with no results. DAN Annual Diving Report 2019 Edition: A report on 2017 diving fatalities, injuries, and incidents [Internet]. A memorial plaque to John stands near the entrance to Nutty Putty Cave. To this day, they havent given up hope that one day Ben, dead or alive, shall be found. A few years ago there was a famous cave diving death, the disappearance of Ben McDaniel in Vortex Springs. Even with improvements in technology, the greatest hazards faced by cave divers remain unchanged. Replies 62 Views . His wallet, with almost $1,100 in cash, and cell phone were in the cab of his truck; dive logs showed that he had explored the cave and a map he made was also found. On the evening Ben disappeared, an inebriated Lowell showed up at the spring and asked if it was too late to go diving. [1] He died before the first year was completed. Three teen swimmers led deputies to the bodies of two divers who drowned at Buford Springs in Florida last week Hernando County Sheriff's Office. [2], They did, however, find some of his equipment. He had come to know Ben in the past couple of months. 4. There are millions of possible ways to die, some less pleasant than others. By that point John had been hanging upside down for more than eight hours. McDaniel, who had been diving regularly at the spring while living in his parents' nearby beach house, had last been seen by two of those employees on the evening of August 18, on a dive entering a cave 58 feet (18m) below the water's surface. [2][1], At Vortex Spring, which claims on its website to be the largest diving facility in the state,[8] divers descend into clear waters at a constant temperature of 68F (20C) fed by the Floridan Aquifer. Whatever the final cause of death, whichever of the million things a real cave diver knows can go wrong and kill you, which an open water diver has no idea . He made three separate dives that day,[1] going (by his account) 1,700 feet (520m) into the cave, 200 feet (61m) further than those sections Ben had mapped, using a diver propulsion vehicle and smaller tanks to increase his range. RAID continues to explain that the most common . BBC World Service. Other divers, and an official with International Underwater Cave Rescue and Recovery, told him it was too dangerous to search any deeper into the cave. 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