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Here are the articles from the local paper: By ROMA KHANNA and BRUCE A. SCRUTON, Staff writers First published: Wednesday, February 28, 2001 Diver's body trapped in cave New Scotland -- Workers plan to drain pool-sized area to free student's body Despite the efforts of nearly a dozen divers, often using pry bars, the body of an RPI student remained trapped Tuesday night in Clarksville Cave, and rescuers now plan to empty the lake so they can chip his body free. Divers dipped into the 40-degree water time and again Tuesday, trying to free the body of Robert Svensson from the 18-inch-wide underwater passage where 23-year-old native of Sherborn, Mass., became trapped Monday evening as he and three others explored the cave. About 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, the tired crews of divers were pulled out of the cave and other workers moved in to set up pumps, hoping to lower the water level in an area about the size of a backyard pool so they can complete their task. Svensson and his companions, Joseph Baj, 24, of Ozone Park, Queens, Michael H. Chu, 22, of Niskayuna, and Jonathan R. Allison, 23, of Troy, entered the cave at Ward Entrance, just off Route 443, at about 7:30 p.m. Monday. The group's destination was the far end of the cave known as Pauley Avenue, a 180-foot-long, inclined passage that is filled with water except for the last 2 to 3 feet. The only access is through a hole in the bottom of the lake in the Lake Room. The nearly 1,000-foot underground route to the Lake Room is a 45-minute trek through narrow passageways and large, house-sized rooms. "There are areas that are dry and large enough to stand up in there,'' said Keith Leonard, captain of the Onesquethaw Fire Department. "And there are areas that are under water or where you have to exhale just to squeeze through.'' As described by Deputy Sheriff John Layton, who has been to the bottom of the pool and tried to retrieve the body, once through the seven-foot-long tube where Svensson's body is trapped, the passage widens out enough so someone can turn around. The rest of Pauley Avenue is a 180-foot incline, all underwater, with nothing at the end. "You have just enough room to stick your head out of the water, take a deep breath and go back,'' said Layton, who said he has never been to the end. The group apparently found the underwater entranceway was clogged with silt and other debris. Each tried to clear the spot. Then Svensson, equipped with a small air tank and wet suit, plunged into the cold water, unwilling to accept defeat. On this last trip, Svensson somehow got wedged in the seven-foot-long, twisting tunnel. Unable to move forward or back out, he apparently died when his air supply ran out. Layton described that first part of the Pauley Avenue trip: "Imagine crawling along the foundation wall of a house, then having to get down into a well and through the basement window -- all the time having no more than two feet to work in,'' Layton said. "We know he's caught at the hips. We don't know about the shoulders because we can't reach up that far,'' he continued. In addition to the wet suit, the deputy said Svensson has a narrow belt around his hips. Svensson was using a "pony bottle'' -- a small air tank about the size of a fire extinguisher -- for his air supply. During their initial rescue efforts, his friends attempted to pass him additional air before calling for help. The divers brought in for the recovery worked until early Tuesday morning, when they were brought out of the cave about 1:30 a.m. They returned later in the morning, trying and reviving plans as each effort proved ineffective. The "lake'' in the Lake Room is about 7-to-9-feet deep and about 15-to-20-feet across. With all that water, the recovery crew is, in effect, trying to empty a backyard swimming pool while, at the same time, several garden hoses are trying to fill it up at about 50 gallons per minute. "It looks like we'll have to use two pumps,'' said Adam Hornick of the Onesquethaw Fire Department. "One, we're hoping, will even off what's flowing in, and the other will be emptying.'' To do the pump-out, the crews are using a natural opening from outside to the Lake Room about 25 feet up in the ceiling. Just after dark and after divers had made a last attempt to free the body, a crew was working to enlarge the opening, which has filled in over the years. Special hydraulic pumps will then be lowered to the shoreline of the underground lake. The drain lines will be going straight up, at least 25 feet, explained Hornick, which will cut the efficiency of the pumps. Also, because the lake is underground, there is increased air pressure, which also reduces the pump outflow. Once the lake level is reduced, workers can get to the opening to Pauley Avenue and chip away at the rock and slate walls where Svensson was trapped. Svensson was an experienced outdoorsman whose activities included rock climbing and skiing, but was not a certified diver, according to Brian Chouiniere, who teaches diving courses at RPI. Svensson had completed an open-water diving course taught by Chouiniere in December but had not yet completed the final elements of the course that would have given him open-water certification. "He had some experience with open-water diving but he was in no way qualified to dive in a cave,'' Chouiniere said. At least two of Svensson's companions, Baj and Allison, had completed open-water diving courses with Chouiniere. Friends and family of Svensson kept a tearful vigil near the scene. As they awaited word of the recovery, the group consoled each other and walked along the country road near the cave to pass the time. Meghan Lord, a friend of Svensson's, arrived at the scene before 9 a.m., shortly after her father found out about the incident from the morning news, because she wanted to be sure someone was on hand when his body was recovered. Lord said Svensson, who taught undergraduates and wanted to be a professor, had a great interest in caving and spent a lot of time exploring and mapping caves around the area. "This was not just an extreme sport to him,'' she said. "He took it seriously.'' Local residents believe this may be the first fatality in at least a half century at the cave, a popular attraction for cavers from around the region. The cave is also used for training the Albany County Sheriff's Department. "People are in this cave 24 hours a day, seven days a week,'' said Leonard, who lives across the street from the main entrance. "No matter what time I come home, I see lights around it. I see charter buses and cars with license plates from Tennessee to Vermont up here.'' By BRUCE A. SCRUTON, Staff writer First published: Thursday, March 1, 2001 Diver's body pulled from cave New Scotland -- Rescuers pump water from underground lake to extract student stuck in crevice With just a handful of minutes to spare, a sheriff's deputy wiggled feet first into the underwater tunnel that had trapped and killed Robert Svensson and finally managed to free the body of the RPI student Wednesday night after days of trying. "The way the water was rising, we had maybe five, 10 minutes to get him out,'' said Albany County Chief Deputy Craig Apple. "After that, it would have been wait until tomorrow.'' A nearly daylong effort to pump water from the small underground lake in the Clarksville Cave had exposed the end of the tunnel where Svensson, a 23-year-old from Sherborn, Mass., had become trapped Monday evening while on an outing with three fellow RPI students. But one of the pumps suddenly failed, allowing water back into the area and jeopardizing recovery efforts. Svensson apparently died when he became trapped and the air supply he was carrying for his underwater expedition ran out. His friends made initial rescue efforts and, when those failed, made the 1,000-foot journey to the cave's entrance and called for help. Divers worked several hours Monday night into Tuesday morning, trying to free the body. A full day of work Tuesday also proved fruitless, and the decision was made to pump out the lake. The two pumps lowered through a hole in the ceiling of the Lake Room worked throughout the day Wednesday and, by about 6 p.m., had dropped the level of the lake to below the entrance of the tunnel. That's when one of the pumps failed. "The second pump was able to keep up with the inflow,'' Apple said, "so we decided to try to get the body out.'' Because they were working underwater, the earlier efforts had failed because the divers were unable to get any leverage. The water was also nearly black with silt, eliminating visibility, so work was by feel. With the water gone, Svensson's feet were clearly visible at the opening of the tunnel, which leads to an area of the cave known as Pauley Avenue. However, in front of the entrance was a thick covering of muck and dirt. Standing on that slippery surface, the deputies still could not get the leverage needed to move the body. A team of diggers climbed down and within 20 minutes loaded 50 or more five-gallon pails of muck and removed sizable rocks to give solid footing. "It's was a nasty scene (at the bottom of the lake). Very mucky, very dirty. A lot of rocks,'' Apple said. And, while the diggers were clearing the spot, the second pump gave out. With Undersheriff John R. Mahan keeping an eye on the water level, which he said was rising rather quickly as the lake refilled, Apple and Investigator William Riley moved to the entrance. While the deputies were not in any danger, Apple said that had the water risen to cover the tunnel entrance, the recovery efforts would have had to be put off for a day until the pumps could be repaired or replaced. "That would have been too much,'' Mahan said. "Emotionally, for the family and the recovery people, we wanted to get him out.'' Earlier in the day, as the water level was receding, Albany County Sheriff James L. Campbell expressed similar concerns. "There is a sense of tension with the family members. This is the third day and they want closure,'' he said. After the recovery, the sheriff reiterated: "This is a great relief, for the family, for everybody involved.'' Apple, wearing a "Gumby'' suit, a special set of shoulder-high waders designed as a flotation device, wriggled feet-first into the tunnel. "There was still water in there. It goes straight down,'' he said, and Svensson was in a head-down position in the tunnel. Squeezing his feet past Svensson's hips and down into the water, Apple was able to use them to partially straighten Svensson's body. Then, with his hands and Riley's help outside the tube, they moved the body back and forth, turning it at the same time. "It was like a corkscrew maneuver. Once we could get his hips turned, he came right out,'' Apple said. From the position of the body, investigators surmise that Svensson "looks like he got part-way in, then decided to get out. Instead of backing out, he apparently tried to turn around and that's when he got stuck,'' Apple said. He said the body was in a sitting position with the hips filling the tunnel from top to bottom, leaving just enough room to the back for Apple to get his legs past. Over the winter, debris had apparently closed down the opposite end of the tunnel, and it was those rocks and dirt that the four college students were trying to clear away Monday. Svensson told his friends, Joseph Baj, 24, of Ozone Park, Queens; Michael H. Chu, 22, of Niskayuna; and Jonathan R. Allison, 23, of Troy; that he would make one final dive to clear more debris. Apple said the tunnel has been used before because there was a tag line leading through the tunnel. The line, or rope, is left by previous divers to provide a guide. Using the line to pull oneself along, an explorer can quickly get through a tight spot. The chief deputy said the tag line was looped around Svensson's arm, but he doesn't know if it was done during the dive or by recovery efforts. Svensson was still wearing the mask connected to the air bottle strapped to his leg. The body was brought out of the cave complex about 7:30 p.m. and taken to Albany Medical Center Hospital where an autopsy is to be performed. At RPI Wednesday night, the Outing Club met at its usual time. More than two dozen students showed up, many discussing the accident before the meeting began, others wearing the club's traditional red button-down shirt. The meeting was closed to the media. writers Roma Khanna and Alan Wechsler contributed to this story. --- Michael Domitrek <n2gypsy@wz*.co*> wrote: > Anyone have any information on this, spotted a small > article in the local paper. Article stated it was at > Clarksville, NY cave and that as of Tuesday they > could not recover the body........ Michael > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get email at your own domain with Yahoo! Mail. http://personal.mail.yahoo.com/ -- Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@aquanaut.com'. Send subscribe/unsubscribe requests to `techdiver-request@aquanaut.com'.
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