Body to be left in Nutty Putty Cave; cave sealed off

SPANISH FORK (ABC 4 News) - Utah County Sheriff's Department says the body of a spelunker who became stuck and died in Nutty Putty Cave will be left there. The cave will also be permanently closed and sealed off.

Officials say it is just too risky and dangerous to try to remove John Jones body. The cave will be permanently closed and sealed office. Officials have set up a meeting on Monday to talk about how that will be done. A sheriff's deputy will remain at the entrance of the cave until it is permanently sealed to prevent anyone from going inside. The site will then become a memorial for Jones.

The decisions were made after all of the parties involved met with the family of John Jones this morning. Jones became trapped nearly upside down in the cave late Tuesday. Rescuers worked for over 24 hours to get him out.

Rescuers say they were making progress late Wednesday, but then a piece of equipment being used to help pull Jones from the cave came free from a rock it was anchored to, dropping him back into the original stuck position. A Utah County Sheriff's spokesman tells ABC News that Jones then began having difficulty breathing and communicating.

Jones passed away at 11:57 pm on Wednesday.

The 26 year old was a Tooele County native, and was attending medical school in Virginia. He was back in Utah visiting relatives in Stansbury Park. Jones is survived by his wife Emily and daughter Elizabeth.

A memorial service will be held for Jones tomorrow at the Stanbury Park Stake Center at 11 am. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking anyone who wants to help to contribute to the Emily Jones Memorial Fund at either Wells Fargo Bank or Universal Campus Credit Union.