Re: [Texascavers] FW: To the TSS webmaster - Butch Fralia - from the cave rel...
Excerpted from Fifty Years of Texas Caving, p. 358 : Jim Beall was a student from Galveston and died in Fair Oaks Pit in Kendall County. He had problems getting up the 60 ft entrance pit and fell to the bottom and then rolled down a steep slope and fell into the second pit that was 50 ft deep. He was able to communicate with his companions at the surface and his initial injuries were believed to be serious but survivable. Local firemen were summoned and strapped him to a wooden backboard and began hoisting him up the drops using a manila rope and steel cable from a tow truck with a powerful winch. Communications were poor. At the top of the second drop, the backboard hung up, and continued pulling snapped the manila rope. More force was applied and the cable tore through the attachment on the backboard, thereby dropping the victim down the 50 ft pit once more. The cumulative effects from both falls proved fatal. Jerry. Bibliography: Anonymous. [1976]. Cave trek ends in death. Austin American-Statesman, [n.d.], p. A8. Iliffe, Tom. 1976. Accident report. Texas Caver, 21:70. Knutson, Steve. 1981. American caving accidents 1976 through 1979. NSS News, 39(5, part 2):i-ii + A1-A82. Kunath, Carl. E. 2007. Fifty Years of Texas Caving, San Angelo, TX, A K Enterprises, 526 pp. In a message dated 5/8/2011 7:13:51 P.M. Central Standard Time, fr...@frankbinney.com writes: I recall news stories of a “spelunker”, who wasn’t affiliated with any Texas caving group, falling while trying to hand over hand a rope in the pit entrance of a small Hays County cave in the 1970s. Maybe it was the decedent in question. Poor guy apparently fractured his spine in his fall and the local volunteer fire department tried to bring him to the surface without a backboard or other c-spine stabilization. Victim was dead when they got him out, whether from the original fall or the rescue wasn’t stated. -Frank On 5/8/11 3:38 PM, Butch Fralia _bfralia@maverickgrotto.org_ (mip://02f6b288/bfra...@maverickgrotto.org) wrote: Does this name ring a bell with anyone? From: Wanda L. Drisoll [_mailto:wdrisc1941@suddenlink.net_ (mailto:wdrisc1...@suddenlink.net) ] Sent: Saturday, May 07, 2011 4:54 PM To: _bfralia@maverickgrotto.org_ (mip://02f6b288/bfra...@maverickgrotto.org) Subject: To the TSS webmaster - Butch Fralia - from the cave related links page. I am seeking information regarding the death of a cave explorer in the 1970's, maybe in Hays or Kendall County. Could you share any information with me regarding the decedent, james Beall?
Re: [Texascavers] FW: To the TSS webmaster - Butch Fralia - from the cave rel...
Excerpted from Fifty Years of Texas Caving, p. 358 : Jim Beall was a student from Galveston and died in Fair Oaks Pit in Kendall County. He had problems getting up the 60 ft entrance pit and fell to the bottom and then rolled down a steep slope and fell into the second pit that was 50 ft deep. He was able to communicate with his companions at the surface and his initial injuries were believed to be serious but survivable. Local firemen were summoned and strapped him to a wooden backboard and began hoisting him up the drops using a manila rope and steel cable from a tow truck with a powerful winch. Communications were poor. At the top of the second drop, the backboard hung up, and continued pulling snapped the manila rope. More force was applied and the cable tore through the attachment on the backboard, thereby dropping the victim down the 50 ft pit once more. The cumulative effects from both falls proved fatal. Jerry. Bibliography: Anonymous. [1976]. Cave trek ends in death. Austin American-Statesman, [n.d.], p. A8. Iliffe, Tom. 1976. Accident report. Texas Caver, 21:70. Knutson, Steve. 1981. American caving accidents 1976 through 1979. NSS News, 39(5, part 2):i-ii + A1-A82. Kunath, Carl. E. 2007. Fifty Years of Texas Caving, San Angelo, TX, A K Enterprises, 526 pp. In a message dated 5/8/2011 7:13:51 P.M. Central Standard Time, fr...@frankbinney.com writes: I recall news stories of a “spelunker”, who wasn’t affiliated with any Texas caving group, falling while trying to hand over hand a rope in the pit entrance of a small Hays County cave in the 1970s. Maybe it was the decedent in question. Poor guy apparently fractured his spine in his fall and the local volunteer fire department tried to bring him to the surface without a backboard or other c-spine stabilization. Victim was dead when they got him out, whether from the original fall or the rescue wasn’t stated. -Frank On 5/8/11 3:38 PM, Butch Fralia _bfralia@maverickgrotto.org_ (mip://02f6b288/bfra...@maverickgrotto.org) wrote: Does this name ring a bell with anyone? From: Wanda L. Drisoll [_mailto:wdrisc1941@suddenlink.net_ (mailto:wdrisc1...@suddenlink.net) ] Sent: Saturday, May 07, 2011 4:54 PM To: _bfralia@maverickgrotto.org_ (mip://02f6b288/bfra...@maverickgrotto.org) Subject: To the TSS webmaster - Butch Fralia - from the cave related links page. I am seeking information regarding the death of a cave explorer in the 1970's, maybe in Hays or Kendall County. Could you share any information with me regarding the decedent, james Beall?
Re: [Texascavers] FW: To the TSS webmaster - Butch Fralia - from the cave rel...
Excerpted from Fifty Years of Texas Caving, p. 358 : Jim Beall was a student from Galveston and died in Fair Oaks Pit in Kendall County. He had problems getting up the 60 ft entrance pit and fell to the bottom and then rolled down a steep slope and fell into the second pit that was 50 ft deep. He was able to communicate with his companions at the surface and his initial injuries were believed to be serious but survivable. Local firemen were summoned and strapped him to a wooden backboard and began hoisting him up the drops using a manila rope and steel cable from a tow truck with a powerful winch. Communications were poor. At the top of the second drop, the backboard hung up, and continued pulling snapped the manila rope. More force was applied and the cable tore through the attachment on the backboard, thereby dropping the victim down the 50 ft pit once more. The cumulative effects from both falls proved fatal. Jerry. Bibliography: Anonymous. [1976]. Cave trek ends in death. Austin American-Statesman, [n.d.], p. A8. Iliffe, Tom. 1976. Accident report. Texas Caver, 21:70. Knutson, Steve. 1981. American caving accidents 1976 through 1979. NSS News, 39(5, part 2):i-ii + A1-A82. Kunath, Carl. E. 2007. Fifty Years of Texas Caving, San Angelo, TX, A K Enterprises, 526 pp. In a message dated 5/8/2011 7:13:51 P.M. Central Standard Time, fr...@frankbinney.com writes: I recall news stories of a “spelunker”, who wasn’t affiliated with any Texas caving group, falling while trying to hand over hand a rope in the pit entrance of a small Hays County cave in the 1970s. Maybe it was the decedent in question. Poor guy apparently fractured his spine in his fall and the local volunteer fire department tried to bring him to the surface without a backboard or other c-spine stabilization. Victim was dead when they got him out, whether from the original fall or the rescue wasn’t stated. -Frank On 5/8/11 3:38 PM, Butch Fralia _bfralia@maverickgrotto.org_ (mip://02f6b288/bfra...@maverickgrotto.org) wrote: Does this name ring a bell with anyone? From: Wanda L. Drisoll [_mailto:wdrisc1941@suddenlink.net_ (mailto:wdrisc1...@suddenlink.net) ] Sent: Saturday, May 07, 2011 4:54 PM To: _bfralia@maverickgrotto.org_ (mip://02f6b288/bfra...@maverickgrotto.org) Subject: To the TSS webmaster - Butch Fralia - from the cave related links page. I am seeking information regarding the death of a cave explorer in the 1970's, maybe in Hays or Kendall County. Could you share any information with me regarding the decedent, james Beall?
