Man Rescued From Mine

A 51-year-old man on an amateur spelunking adventure with his son was injured Saturday when he plunged 200 feet down an abandoned mine shaft in a remote part of this high-desert community.

Members of the Los Angeles County Urban Search and Rescue Team extracted James Swenson of Acton almost seven hours after he became trapped on an 8-foot ledge in the old gold mine just north of Angeles National Forest.

One rescuer descended into the shaft to help Swenson into a sling, and eight others, using a system of ropes and pulleys, hoisted him out. He was transported to an area hospital, but appeared to have suffered only minor injuries.

Rescue personnel were alerted at 3:30 p.m., an hour after Swenson fell, when his son, Jason, 22, called from a local auto parts store after finding the Acton Volunteer Fire Department closed, officials said. The pair had been exploring the 800-foot-deep mine when the shaft’s built-in ladder began to crumble.

The men were tethered to a beam at the mine’s entrance with a rope.

“The rope started vibrating all of a sudden, and all of a sudden the ladder collapsed,” said Jason Swenson, who had reached the top of the shaft when the ladder gave way.

The men had descended about 400 feet, using only the rope, with no harnesses, clips or other climbing equipment, before starting back up.

“I thought he was dead,” Jason Swenson said. “I didn’t want to think like that, but I thought he was dead.”

The unmarked mine, which looks like little more than a hole in the side of a hill, is a popular hangout for local teenagers.

The mine’s main shaft is deep inside the hill past several large caverns littered with beer bottles and syringes, according to Jason Swenson, who said he has been inside the mine more then a dozen times.

After falling, the elder Swenson was able to pull himself up to a small ledge about 50 feet higher, but still 150 feet below the mouth of the shaft.

Jason Swenson, who was unable to reach his father, first tried calling a friend who he knew had specialized spelunking equipment.

“I tried to call my buddy but he wasn’t home,” he said. So he called authorities.

At the scene late Saturday night, a bitter cold rain fell on 70 rescue workers and sheriff’s deputies. Search and rescue efforts where hampered first by inclement weather and cloud cover at the scene, which kept rescue helicopters grounded, and later by darkness.

By 6 p.m., rescue workers had lowered a camera into the narrow 6-by-6-foot shaft to check on Swenson’s condition. They could see scratches on his arms and a gash on his forehead.

Throughout the ordeal, rescuers were able to talk to Swenson, who remained in good spirits throughout the day. A local handyman, Swenson and his son were searching for gold and owls when the accident occurred.