High angle view of a volcanic crater, Vesuvius, Campania, Italy (Photo by DEA / PUBBLI AER FOTO/De Agostini via Getty Images) CAMPANIA, Italy - A man survived a terrifying experience after falling into Mount Vesuvius while trying to retrieve his cell phone last weekend, according to multiple reports.NBC News identified the survivor of the accident as 23-year-old Phillip Carroll.
The outlet first reported that the Maryland resident and his two family members traveled to Vesuvius using a trail off limits to visitors.Once the family made it to the top of the volcano, Carroll stopped to take a selfie when he dropped his phone into the volcano.
Paolo Cappelli, the president of the Presidio Permanente Vesuvio, told NBC that Carroll tried to retrieve his device but lost his balance, falling into the crater and getting stuck.Mount Vesuvius’ highest peak reaches 1,277 meters, and the crater's diameter is 450 meters with a depth of 300 meters, according to the Parco Nazionale Vesuvio parks website.
That's more than 900 feet deep. File picture of an aerial view taken from an helicopter window shows the crater of the mount Vesuvius volcano, is seen near the Italian city of Naples. (Photo MARIO LAPORTA/AFP via Getty Images) Tour guides from the Presidio Permanente Vesuvio witnessed Carroll fall into the volcano and rushed to help him.