Student Researcher Freed From Cave After Becoming Stuck Three Miles Underground

It's a claustrophobe's worst nightmare. Three miles into an overnight research trip through an expansive Tennessee cave, a Vanderbilt student fell so ill he was unable to return, prompting a massive rescue effort from first responders. The emergency call came in a little before 11am on Saturday, according to local reporting. The Vanderbilt group embarked on a geochemical field trip sometime on Friday afternoon through the Blue Springs Cave in White County, Tennessee, before the unnamed student became ill deep within the Earth. The joint rescue operation lasted nearly nine hours, and included at least 12 emergency agencies. "We were thinking it might be a multi-day rescue," said a spokesperson for the Hamilton County Rescue Squad, which responded to assist White County first responders. Like all cave rescues, the nature of the mission was tricky. They typically require careful planning, constant communication with the victim, and a small army of expertly trained emergency workers a ... Read full article.