A man’s bones lay in a cave for 41 years.

On February 13, 1965, 23-year-old chemist James Mitchell died of exposure while hanging from a harness above a cavern inside Schroeder’s Pants Cave in New York. He had been lowered into a narrow 75-foot-deep shaft when he somehow got stuck in a stream of frigid water flowing at 10 gallons per minute.

After 45 frantic minutes trying to lift Mitchell to safety, his companion Bennett left the cave to find help, prompting a call to the newly formed National Capital Grotto Rescue Team, which flew in from Washington, D.C. The story made national headlines and was covered by the three major TV networks.