So I will be the first to admit that I know nothing about caving. I came across the story of the death of John Jones in Nutty Putty Cave. I watched a video of a group of people filming the themselves traversing the cave, moving through a narrow region barely wide enough for a human torso called the ‘birth canal’ which eventually widens into a larger room. I’ve attached a YouTube link if you are interested (old video, poor quality). The cave has since closed for obvious reasons.
https://youtu.be/ZYEKhgFrpd4
So my question is not about this incident actually, but rather how cave systems like this are mapped out. A quick google search reveals a fairly detailed map of Nutty Putty Cave that I suspect was developed after the cave became popular - the cave was discovered back in 1960. Is it likely that people traversed these extremely narrow passages without the knowledge that there would be openings later on for them to turn around in? In modern cave exploration are there specialized tools for testing narrow passages? Are there standardized metrics used to measure the risk of particular cave systems? How do cavers in unexplored areas decide when it is too dangerous to proceed? If you are at all familiar with the story, did poor mapping or signage contribute to the incident?
I’m quite curious about all of this so any information is welcome.
Thanks!