Two UF students died Saturday while rappelling into a cave in northwest Georgia during a weekend trip with some friends.
Michael Pirie, a marketing freshman, and Grant Lockenbach, a sociology senior, were going down into Ellison’s Cave in Walker County when they stopped responding to their friends’ calls.
One of the friends called 9-1-1 at 2:19 p.m.
County officers speculated the cause of death was hypothermia but won’t know for sure until autopsies have been completed. The coroner’s report will be released early this week.
More than 300 people gathered at Abundant Grace Community Church on Sunday night to remember them in a prayer service.
Pirie, of Ocoee, was a drummer in the UF Drumline. Lockenbach, of DeLand, was the president of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and a member of UF’s ROTC program.
