Holes That Have Taken The Most Human Lives

May 2024 ยท 1 minute read

As a BBC article describes, the Plura River in central Norway appears dramatically, rising out of a pond that is actually the opening to a flooded cave system; the Plura, for a part of its length, runs underground. The article goes on to say that this makes it a favorite for scuba diving, with the highlight being the dry cave of Steinugleflaget over a mile in (which is also the second entry to the caverns). This was the destination for five Finnish divers in 2014.

What happened next is highlighted in the documentary, "Diving Into The Unknown," plus several written accounts. Scuba website Mpora recounts how one of the divers' gear got tangled in a narrow passageway, causing him to breathe harder and faster. Under normal circumstances, this is normal with any exertion. But underwater, with sensitive breathing equipment, any quickening of breath can result in deadly carbon dioxide poisoning. That diver, Jari Huotarinen, quickly perished. According to Mpora, another diver, Jari Uusimaki, came across the body and panicked, resulting in another death by carbon dioxide. The BBC report says the remaining divers were not then equipped to retrieve their friends but later returned to recover the bodies in a solemn show of brotherhood.

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