TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Hudson Cave Known As A Challenge To Divers

ADVERTISEMENT

By LISA A. DAVIS

ldavis@tampatrib.com

Published: November 14, 2008

Things can go wrong quickly in cave diving.

Deep underwater, where visibility is measured in a few feet and where communication is limited to hand signals, the margin of error is slim. One wrong turn, one bad decision, a piece of equipment that malfunctions, can turn a recreational dive into disaster in a matter of seconds.

That is part of why cave divers do it.

"That's a whole different breed," said Jerry Richardson, an employee at Scuba Quest in Brandon. "You have overhead conditions. It's dark. You need different equipment."

The lure of cave diving proved fatal this week for two Hillsborough County men. The bodies of Joseph Christian Hartranft, 52, and Marine Lt. Col. Yessic Cozay Spencer, 42, were found Wednesday night in an underwater Pasco County cave known as School Sink.

Their deaths bring to eight the number of people who have died in the series of caves in western Pasco and Hernando counties in the past three decades. The area is pockmarked with a labyrinth of underwater caves that draw a small but passionate community of cave divers.

Even among the cave-diving community, School Sink is known as a dangerous dive.

"For Florida, it's probably one of the more challenging cave dives," said Paul Heinerth of Hudson, who has dived there more than 100 times.

Only Members Allowed

Little about School Sink, named for its proximity to Hudson Elementary School, seems remarkable from the outside.

The property is west of U.S. 19 in Hudson, is owned by the National Speleological Society and is open to members only. Members who dive there are required to check in at the Scuba West dive shop on Tower Drive, where they must show proof that they have made at least 100 cave dives.

According to the society's magazine, School Sink is an intricate "tidally influenced cave system." Even the best visibility is only 15 to 30 feet and the system's soft black silt is easily disturbed.

For divers like Heinerth, 56, who has been cave diving for decades, the challenge is part of the attraction.

"It starts right away being silty and low visibility," he said.

School Sink's entrance is like a funnel, only big enough for one diver.

The limestone is especially soft and can give way, causing rock showers. Some divers describe it like Swiss cheese, with passages everywhere.

The sightseeing, though, is first-rate, Heinerth said.

He has spotted a prehistoric manatee and a whale's skeleton. "To me it's like, wow, this used to be an animal when this was the bottom of the ocean," he said.

Divers Worked At MacDill

Staff Sgt. Joseph Loewy said Spencer was a reservist from Gainesville who was mobilized as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. He worked at U.S. Central Command at MacDill Air Force Base.

A friend, retired Air Force Master Sgt. Nancy Morgan, called Spencer "the greatest person I ever met."

"Honestly, he loved his family," Morgan said. "He was dedicated to his country."

Spencer was a member of the Professional Association of Diving Instructors and taught diving at Scuba West three or four times a year, said Jeff Tobey, owner of Scuba West.

Hartranft was a retired Navy chief warrant officer who later took a job as a contractor for Lockheed Martin at Centcom, said his son, 29-year-old Joseph Hartranft. He said his father took up diving a little more than a year ago.

"My dad was a fun-loving, good guy," Joseph Hartranft said. "He was a family guy. He loved his kids."

Cause Of Deaths Unclear

Investigators were still trying to figure out what led to the divers' deaths.

One body was found near the entrance of School Sink. The other was in a side tunnel.

"It turned out they were so, so close to the entrances," said Heinerth.

The men appeared to have the right equipment, including dual oxygen tanks, Heinerth said.

"It comes down to personal responsibility," said Pasco County Sheriff's Office spokesman Kevin Doll. "If you're not certified to skydive, you don't jump out of a plane. Cave diving is one of the most dangerous sports in the world."

Reporters Josh Poltilove, Laura Frazier and News Channel 8 reporter Rod Challenger contributed to this report. Reporter Lisa A. Davis can be reached at (727) 815-1083.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT