HARTSVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Three skydivers — Gio Masters, Josh Morris, and Austin Shaw — were detained in Trousdale County this week after jumping from a plane into a shutdown cooling tower at the old Hartsville nuclear plant.
While there is no radioactivity there, the act was illegal, according to Sheriff Ray Russell. Deputies and the Tennessee Valley Authority detained the suspects, who told authorities they didn't realize the former tower was off-limits. The reactor was never used by TVA and was part of a canceled plant in the 1980s.
Watch them dive into the tower in the player above.
"We started climbing the ladder and started hearing the sirens, and thought, 'what is going on man?'" Morris said.
The three, known as extreme athletes, usually post their gallivants and stunts.
The sheriff ways the cooling towers are a magnet for thrill seekers from across the country.
After a few tense moments, the responding law enforcement reacted with a sense of humor.
"He even was like, 'If I had known you were gonna climb the tower we would have given you two bulbs! We have to pay a guy to do that!'"
The three now have earned a court date, along with a little humility.
Both Trousdale County Sheriffs Deputies and Tennessee Valley Authority Police responded to the old reactor this week.
They remind everyone that property is off limits.
Nashville's skyline looks drastically different than when I came to NewsChannel 5 in 1993. A lot of those changes have happened in just the last several years, and the skyline continues to grow. Sky 5 and several viewers have been able to visually document it. I love Austin's look back!
- Lelan Statom
