Missing man rescued after being trapped in Sparta cave

Officials said a man was rescued after a local rescue team was called to an incident in Sparta, Tennessee.

The Knox County Rescue's cave and vertical team were called to a cave rescue near White County Friday night, according to the Knox County Rescue Squad.

Officials said nearly 40 people from at least three different states assisted in the rescue.

A man was trapped underground in a cave Friday night and unable to move, according to reports.

Trevor Pickel, with Knox County Rescue, said the victim was cave diving with a team when he got trapped. A teammate reportedly ran for help.

The Sparta Rescue Squad shared a post from the Hickory Valley Baptist Church, which the church says the victim attended.

Officials said rescue crews had to rig ropes and shave the rocks to widen the path before the man could be rescued. Cavers placed bolts in the cave to assist crews with the removal.

A medic repelled and climbed to the victim inside the cave and gave him brief medical attention to ease the man's pain before he was removed.

Several rescue team members were in the cave with the man and communicated to the rescuers outside the cave about the conditions.

Around 3:30 a.m. Saturday, the man was removed from the cave. Officials said he was pale but doing well, despite all he went through.

Sparta Rescue crews said there were nearly one hundred people at the scene of the incident.

"Humans are capable of such beauty and wonder. If you ever doubt your fellow man, come to a cave rescue," Sparta Rescue Squad wrote in a post on Facebook. "Tonight a team of humans saved a life. I can’t think of anything more amazing than that."

The victim was taken to a local hospital.

"He's recovering well. They did a very good job," Pickle said.

Knox County Rescue assisted with the rescue and returned to Knoxville around 9 a.m. Saturday morning.

If you would like to donate to the rescue crews who helped assist on the scene you can follow the links below to their specific pages: