An inquest heard how a Keighley engineer and her work colleague died in a popular cave when they became trapped in strong waters.
Caroline Fletcher, 28, from Riddlesden, and 33-year-old Stuart Goodwill, of Darlington, County Durham, were found - tied together - by the Cave Rescue Organisation in Lower Long Churn, Selside, in the early hours of December 28.
The inquest - held in Skipton last Thursday - was told that Mr Goodwill, an experienced caver, was supervising Ms Fletcher on her first potholing trip when one of them fell in a pool of water and probably pulled in the other.
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David Gallivan, who supervised the rescue operation, said that this might have happened after the pair were caught in a small flood and tried to exit the cave.
Stating he could only make an assumption, Mr Gallivan said: "They would have thought that the bigger danger was staying there.
"Stuart got across into the second oxbow and tied a rope to Caroline and then got back down the rope and then they both tried to exit the first oxbow.
"The water has got hold of one of them and taken them both down - because of the volume of water they would have drowned.
"They had no chance of getting out - the volume of water going down the cave is so strong you would not have a chance."
He said that if the pair had stayed in the cave, they would probably have been safe.
Mr Goodwill and Ms Fletcher were both engineers - he worked for Skipton-based JN Bentleys while Miss Fletcher was employed by its subsidiary, Mott MacDonald Bentley.
In a statement, her father, Paul Fletcher, said Caroline "always tried to improve herself" at work and that her death had hit the family very hard.
He said: "Caroline was the life and soul of any party. She would walk into a room without knowing anyone and within a couple of minutes would know everyone.
"Caroline loved music and she played guitar in a band. She was an outdoor person who enjoyed going out with friends every week."
Mr Goodwill's wife, Claire, alerted police to the incident when her husband failed to return home.
Coroner Geoff Fell said he was sure that Mr Goodwill made what he thought was the right decision for the pair in the cave.
He said: "As an experienced caver, Stuart would have been reluctant to leave her. He would have been concerned for her and her general well-being.
"It is easy for me to say they should have stayed until the water in the oxbow went down but I wasn't there. I do not know what decision Stuart and Caroline had to make.
"North Yorkshire has a great many activities. By all means, enjoy these activities but do plan. There is always a risk and I have to say that if risks weren't involved people would not do it anyway."
He offered his condolences to the families and recorded verdicts of accidental death.
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