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North Carolina man killed while exploring cave on High Knob
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| By O'DONNA RAMSEY, Staff Writer |
September 30, 2003 |
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A 59-year-old North Carolina man described as a world-renowned spelunker fell nearly 200 feet to his death Saturday while exploring a cave on High Knob.
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Richard "Dick" Carter Graham, of 5001 Elaine Ave., Raleigh, came to the area with a group of six others to explore caves, according to Wise County Sheriff Ronnie Oakes.
The accident occurred inside the Lori Cory Canyon Cave, which is located on Jefferson National Forest property, he said.
According to sheriff's investigator Carl Carico, the incident took place between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. when the group of highly-skilled spelunkers was about an hour and a half into the cave.
Graham was rappelling down a 200-foot wall inside the cave when he fell, Carico said. The descent appeared to be normal at first, he said, and no one knows for sure why Graham fell.
One woman had already made it to the bottom of the wall, and the others were standing at the top. Carico said those on top could not see what happened, because they lost sight of him as he descended. As is standard practice in cave exploring, he said, the woman at the bottom had retreated to a "safe zone" as Graham began his descent, and she did not look up in case rocks fell.
It is uncertain at this point what caused the accident, Carico says, though there doesn't appear to have been a problem with the rope. After Graham fell, Carico said, another man came down the same rope Graham had used.
Members of the group are trained in basic first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation, so they checked Graham and determined he was dead, Carico said. Then both the man and the woman went back up the wall to the others.
It was 9 p.m. by the time the group reassembled, made their way back out of the cave and arrived at the sheriff's department to report the incident, Oakes said.
Police called in Bristol-based Triangle Rescue, a group trained and certified in rescuing people or recovering bodies from caves. Also, the National Cave Rescue Commission sent in people from Georgia and Tennessee to assist in the recovery effort.
About 100 people, including local rescue workers and spelunkers, assisted in the effort, Carico said. Also, he said, Graham's wife and daughter came to the area to wait for his body to be recovered.
The rescue group gathered late Saturday night to map the cave and devise a plan to remove Graham's body. They entered the cave around noon on Sunday, and worked through the night, finally bringing out Graham shortly after 11 a.m. Monday, he said.
The county medical examiner will examine Graham's body to determine cause of death, and he will make the decision on whether Graham should be sent to the state medical examiner's office for an autopsy, Carico said.
Police have ruled out foul play in Graham's death, Carico said, and the sheriff's department will not continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the accident.
Determining exactly what happened is out of the area of expertise for police, he noted, and people knowledgeable about spelunking would be more suited to make that determination.
According to Oakes and Carico, Graham was a highly-skilled and well-known spelunker who had appeared in magazines, taught classes and trained others.
The four men and two women who were with him also were among the highest skilled spelunkers in the nation, Carico says. The spelunkers, most of whom were from other parts of Virginia, were studying the cave, he noted.
Graham's wife wanted police to publicly thank those who came together and worked for more than 24 hours to recover her husband's body, Carico said.
Also, he said, the sheriff's department wants to express its appreciation to the many local businesses that supplied water and food to feed the rescue workers. Further, he said, officials are thankful to Don and Wilma Swavely, who volunteered to collect and deliver the supplies to the workers.
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©Coalfield.com 2009
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Angelle Guyette |
Jan, 25 2006 |
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Good job on the article. Having been out of caving for some years due to illness, I was enthusiastic about getting back into it. In looking up old friends, I just found out last night that Dick Graham is dead, and am struggling to find out all I can. He was a good man, the most patient instructor and one of the safest cavers I have ever known. The only way I can make sense of his death, is that people die every day in their cars, and walking down steps, and crossing streets and bridges. When something goes wrong, we learn what we can apply, but realize some things just happen, like equipment failures and rock falls, and things that we check and double check but that still slip by. As Dick himself once said when asked if he would stop caving when his friend, Roberta, died in a cave diving accident, he said, "We can't stop living for fear of dying."
I hadn't seen him in years, but it hurts so much to know he is gone. He was a good friend, and the world was a better place with him in it. Just tell me that there are caves in Heaven...
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Alex Sproul |
Sep, 30 2003 |
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Well done, O'Donna. Yours is the only news story that got all the facts straight and showed some respect for the deceased and his family.
Dick was a good friend and caving partner for 30 years. He will be sorely missed.
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