Nutty Putty Cave Incident: John Edward Jones’ Death Shows The Grim Dangers Of Caving

Nutty Putty Cave has become synonymous with the tragic death of a caver who became trapped in its narrow tunnels in 2009. But while many people have learned about the cave through this accident, they are less familiar with the cave's longer history.

For decades prior to the incident, the cave system was a popular destination for amateur and professional cave enthusiasts alike.

What is Nutty Putty Cave?

Nutty Putty Cave is located near the city of Pleasant Grove, Utah, in the United States. The cave system was first discovered and explored in 1960 by Dale Green and friends. Because many of the passages contained a soft, brown clay that could be molded by touch, Green decided to call it Nutty Putty Cave, after the popular children’s toy, Silly Putty. Like the toy, the clay could shift from a solid to a flexible fluid when gently squeezed.

This viscous clay is composed of tiny particles of silicon dioxide , or silica as it is often known, which is commonly found in nature in the form of quartz.

Whereas caves are often formed by surface water that descends into the ground (known as epidemic caves), Nutty Putty is an example of a hypogenic cave. This type of cave system was formed from below, when superheated groundwater rose to the surface, dissolving limestone as it went. This is because the groundwater was probably slightly acidic.

Over time, it ate at the rock and created a complex network of passages and domes. According to one survey of Nutty Putty , there are over 410 meters (1,345 feet) of chutes and tunnels in the cave system, the most famous (and tight) being “The Big Slide”, “The Birth Canal”, “The Maze”, and “The Helmet Eater”.

The Nutty Putty Cave Death

After it was discovered in 1960, Nutty Putty became a popular cave that attracted many visitors. However, some of these cave explorers were inexperienced and unprepared for the tight network of tunnels it contained. NBC News reported that rescuers had to be called to the cave five times in the decade preceding the 2009 incident.

There were no fatalities following these callouts, but they nevertheless required rescuing. Then, in 2005, the deaths of four Utah youths in the nearby cave on “Y” Mountain led to further concerns.

In 2006, Nutty Putty Cave was closed due to mounting safety concerns, but it was eventually reopened in May 2009. In order to protect visitors, a management plan was signed with Timpanogos Grotto, to provide an online reservation system that restricted access to one group at a time.

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Unfortunately, it was only a matter of months after this that tragedy struck.

On November 24, 2009, John Edward Jones, a medical student, visited Nutty Putty Cave with his brother Josh and friends. Unfortunately, while he was trying to find the Birth Canal, Jones entered an unmapped portion of the cave near “Ed’s Push.”

Jones, believing he was in the wider opening elsewhere in the system, attempted to push himself headfirst through a tight sport to turn around, but he became wedged at a 70-degree angle and could not escape.

Throughout the following day, teams of rescuers attempted to save him, but he soon started to lose consciousness because of the position he was in. His heart was under increased strain to pump blood from his brain, a process that is usually aided by gravity.

During the rescue efforts, a pulley system was installed to help free Jones from his position, but it could not be secured against the soft, clay walls. In fact, one rescuer was struck in the face when the pulley tore free from the point it was anchored to.

Despite the efforts to rescue him, Jones was declared dead a few minutes before midnight on November 25. Due to his position in the cave, rescuers were unable to recover his body. As such, he was left in place and Nutty Putty Cave was officially closed to the public. The site remains a sealed grave to this day.