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PROVO, Utah (AP) -- A year after four Utah County young people drowned in an underground cave, it's unclear what progress the state is making toward sealing off other caves or abandoned mines.
Scott McDonald, 28, Blake Donner, 24, Jennifer Galbraith, 21, and Ariel Singer, 18, lost their lives Aug. 18, 2005, when they got stuck in a water-filled tunnel inside Gollum's Cave on Y Mountain in Provo. The deaths generated national headlines and pledges from officials to close it and others. Gollum's Cave was closed within a day.
Some say sealing the caves may not make sense.
"There are more caves in Utah than we know about right now," says Chuck Acklin, vice chairman of Timpanogos Grotto, Utah County's chapter of the National Speleological Society. "Sealing off all the mines makes sense, but the caves, there's a lot of science in those caves that we don't understand yet."
In May, crews installed at gate at Nutty Putty Cave, another popular western Utah County spot for caving adventures, that was long believed a safety hazard.
Timpanogos Grotto now regulates the cave, along with others known as Blowhole, Silly Putty and Rabbit Trap, granting access only to applying groups with experienced leaders.
"There is a pretty extensive effort (going on)," says Bureau of Land Management spokeswoman Teresa Rigby, "especially on those (caves and mines) that are in places people frequently visit."
The Timpanogos Grotto Web site, states Utah has 26 gated caves. But cavers estimate the state has 500 known caves and, perhaps, hundreds more that remain unknown.
But installing gates or sealing danger spots isn't cheap. BLM official Chris Tincher says it can cost more than $3,000 to identify, prepare and seal an abandoned mine.
Other challenges include coordinating a safety campaign among multitudes of landowners, including BLM lands, national forests, state trust lands, city properties and private grounds.
Most cavers endorse efforts to seal abandoned mines but closing natural caves is more sensitive and expert spelunkers don't want to see unnatural barriers.
Instead state officials say the goal is to rein in thrill seekers by establishing rules. Utah-based BLM officials have also ramped up a safety campaign.
Utah grotto groups are doing their part by crafting cave-training programs which they share with Scout troops and other youth programs.
"We've attempted to manage the risk, but we're unable to manage the gamblers," Acklin says. "We're trying to bring out that caving is, in fact, very dangerous."
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Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune, http://www.sltrib.com
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
