HELENA – Authorities say a 57-year-old Helena man has died after he fell into a cave northeast of Avon.
Lewis and Clark County Coroner Mickey Nelson identified the man as Alan James Smith. Sheriff Leo Dutton says Smith was with a friend Monday when he fell about 50 feet while trying to photograph Ophir Cave, which is popular with spelunkers.
Smith’s friend called 911 with a cell phone at about 11:30 a.m., and emergency crews repelled into the cave. Nelson says the victim was flown by helicopter to St. Peter’s Hospital in Helena, where he died of blunt-force trauma at about 4:15 p.m.