Funeral arrangements set for man killed in caving accident

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December 17, 2009

By HEATHER PYLES, Staff Writer The Commonwealth Journal Thu Dec 17, 2009, 09:10 PM EST

Somerset — Funeral arrangements have been set for a young man who died after falling in a southern Pulaski County cave on Wednesday.

Steven Troxell, 21, of Somerset, died Wednesday afternoon after he slipped and fell into a steep 60-foot pit while exploring a cave in the Sloans Valley cave system in southern Pulaski County.

Troxell and two companions, 21-year-old Brooke Butt and 26-year-old Brandon Butt, all three “inexperienced” cave explorers, according to officials, had entered the greenhouse entrance of the Sloans Valley caves around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday morning.

The accident happened between 2 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. Rescue team members were called to the site by 3 p.m. 18 rescuers entered the cave and searched for Troxell for two hours, emerging at approximately 5 p.m. to strategize. It was then that Brandon Butt agreed to reenter the cave — deemed a “treacherous” one by officials and unsuitable for inexperienced explorers — with the rescuers to help locate Troxell.

It wasn’t until 7 p.m. when Troxell was found, and rescuers were unable to get him out of the cave until approximately 10:30 p.m. It was then that Pulaski County Coroner Richard New pronounced him dead from blunt force trauma injuries, though officials confirmed that he was deceased by the time rescuers reached him in the cave.

Troxell had only been in that cave once before Wednesday’s incident, and Troxell’s mother, Rita Troxell said she was surprised her son had even gone into the cave. She told media on the scene that he loved racing, specifically dirt track racing, according to his obituary, and he enjoyed making late models with popsicle sticks.

Funeral services for Troxell will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at Lake Cumberland Funeral Home, and visitation is set for today at 6 p.m. at the funeral home.

A complete obituary for Troxell is available on page 3 of today’s edition.

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