Many of you have written kind notes since I first wrote about this last week, thank you. Ben has been missing since August 20 and to date there is still no recovery or location as to where he might be. I thought I would take a moment, however and provide a few more of the details as they have been released.
The search continues…
http://www.newsherald.com/news/ponce-86634-day-resume.html
Several teams of expert divers, including qualified cave divers and cave diving instructors, have already searched the more than 1,600-foot cave at Vortex Springs that drops as much as 165 feet deep. Two of McDaniel’s tanks were found outside the cave and there are indications that someone penetrated to the final obstruction in the cave, a crevasse that has not been entered to date.
It is believed that McDaniel could have been trying to map the complete cave and that he could have somehow gotten through the crevasse, pushing his gear and equipment through in front of him.
I’m also going to post a few of the insights the divers who are a part of the search mission to put a little perspective on the scene at hand and for those (like myself) who are not cave divers.
*****************************
|
Search for missing diver will resume after Labor Day
Comments 0 September 02, 2010 12:02:00 AM JAY FELSBERG Florida Freedom Newspapers PONCE DE LEON — The search for missing diver Ben McDaniel will resume after Labor Day using underwater cameras and fresh divers. |
Response:
I was told that u/w cameras were being considered since all attempts to find him have failed.
| Capt. Harry Hamilton of the Holmes County Sheriff’s Office announced the plan after consulting with diving experts Tuesday at Vortex Springs north of Ponce de Leon. McDaniel, 30, of Collierville, Tenn. just outside of Memphis, was reported missing Aug. 20 after having not been seen at Vortex Springs since the preceding Wednesday. His vehicle, wallet and diving logbook were found but there was no sign of McDaniel. The missing man was a regular diver at the popular diving location off State 81. |
Response:
That corresponds.
| Hamilton said an underwater video camera would probably be employed in the search and that cave divers from around the nation were expected to help.Several teams of expert divers, including qualified cave divers and cave diving instructors, have already searched the more than 1,600-foot cave at Vortex Springs that drops as much as 165 feet deep. |
Response:
Corresponds.
| Two of McDaniel’s tanks were found outside the cave |
Response:
My understanding is that tanks were found inside the cave, but outside the grate.
| and there are indications that someone penetrated to the final obstruction in the cave, a crevasse that has not been entered to date. |
Response:
My understanding is that more dives were made this week and a dive team had pushed to the final restriction.
| It is believed that McDaniel could have been trying to map the complete cave |
Response:
Confirmed by several people. My understanding is that the map was crude, and inaccurate.
| and that he could have somehow gotten through the crevasse, pushing his gear and equipment through in front of him.[/B] |
Response:
To my knowledge no evidence of this has been found.
| The dive to the final obstruction gets increasingly dangerous, according to several expert divers who have participated in the search. The cave narrows and drops sharply, with a number of cutouts on either side where a diver could get confused and panic, they said. The dive requires teamwork, and divers must leave decompression tanks along their path for the decompression necessary as they back through the cave.Hamilton said search divers would not go into the deepest restrictions and would check all crevasses again using the camera if available. |
Response:
As I understand it, the cave has been thoroughly checked. If a camera is brought in, it will be used for documentation/confirmation purposes.
| “Even with experts, there have been several close calls,” Hamilton said. |
Response:
“Close” is probably subjective, but there have been incidents during the search.