on what seemed to be a stable wall of the cave. The passage shifted and he was caught by a rock that fell from the cave ceiling, pinning his left leg; as well as torrents of loose gravel to completely bury his body. He was trapped from the entrance. Neighbors began to worry for Floyd the next day and sought out to find him. Though none of them were brave enough to take on the smaller passages it took to reach Collins, they were able to get close enough to communicate with him and learn he was trapped. His younger brother Homer was soon phoned to the scene, and was the only person able to make it through the small passages to get to Floyd before faces like reporter Skeets Miller, Lieutenant Robert Burdon of the Louisville Fire Department, and family friend Johnnie Gerald crossed the boundary in the coming days. Homer brought Floyd food and liquids to retain his energy, and many ideas were thought up by locals and tourists alike as techniques to get Floyd out of the cave. On February 2, 1925 a plan was devised to hoist Collins from the cave using a harness, rope, and the strength of multiple men. This attempt failed, it injured Collins, pulling his torso directly upwards and against the ceiling of rock above him. Rescuers ultimately decided the best way to get him out was to dig each rock that surrounded him out and leverage the large rock off his foot. Eventually, an electric light was run down the passage to provide him lighting and some warmth. Due to the attention the disaster gained, hundreds of inexperienced cave explorers and tourists stood outside the mouth of the cave. The cool winter air caused them to light camp fires that disrupted the natural ice within Sand Cave causing it to melt and create puddles of cool water; one of which Floyd himself lay in. On February 4, the cave passage collapsed in two places due to the ice melting. Attempts were made to dig the passages that led to Floyd back out, but rescue leaders, led by Henry St. George Tucker Carmichael, determined the cave impassable and too dangerous which brought the decision to dig a shaft straight down to reach the chamber behind Collins. Collins survived for more than a week while rescue efforts were organized. The cave drew air