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Twelve boys missing in Thai cave found alive after nine days Twelve boys missing in Thai cave found alive after nine days
(35 minutes later)
Rescuers are working to free 12 boys and their football coach who have been found alive nine days after going missing in a flooded cave in Thailand, local authorities have said.Rescuers are working to free 12 boys and their football coach who have been found alive nine days after going missing in a flooded cave in Thailand, local authorities have said.
The governor of Chiang Rai province, Narongsak Osottanakorn, said Thai navy Seals had found the group in the six-mile Tham Luang Nang Non cave, on the border with Laos and Myanmar, “all with signs of life”.The governor of Chiang Rai province, Narongsak Osottanakorn, said Thai navy Seals had found the group in the six-mile Tham Luang Nang Non cave, on the border with Laos and Myanmar, “all with signs of life”.
He said, in comments broadcast nationwide, that the 13 were in the process of being rescued, but warned that he did not know their condition and they not were out of danger yet. “We found them safe. But the operation isn’t over,” he said. In comments broadcast nationwide, he said the 13 were in the process of being rescued, but warned that he did not know their condition and they not were out of danger yet. “We found them safe. But the operation isn’t over,” he said.
Photographs from the scene showed joyful relatives looking at a picture on an iPad taken by one of the rescue divers showing four of the boys smiling and looking in good health. Pictures from the scene showed joyful relatives who had clustered near the cave in an increasingly fraught vigil looking at a photograph on an iPad taken by one of the rescue divers and showing four of the boys smiling and looking in good health.
The boys, aged 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old coach went missing after entering the cave on 23 June and being trapped by rising floodwater, prompting a desperate round-the-clock search beset by torrential downpours that stopped divers going in. Aisha Wiboonrungrueng, the mother of 11-year-old Chanin Wiboonrungrueng, said she was overjoyed and would cook her son a Thai fried omelette, his favorite food, when he returned home.
The international rescue effort has gripped Thailand. Cave diving experts flew in from the UK, and 17 US air force rescue and survival specialists travelled from Japan to join the 132 Thai army, navy and police officers working day and night to try to find the group. “I’m so glad ... I want to him to be physically and mentally fit,” said Tinnakorn Boonpiem, whose 12-year-old son, Mongkol, is also among the 13.
“I found out from the television ... I’m so happy I can’t put it into words,” another relative of one of the group told television reporters, tears of joy streaming down his cheeks.
The boys, aged 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old coach went missing after entering the cave on 23 June and becoming trapped by rising floodwater, prompting a desperate round-the-clock search beset by torrential downpours that stopped divers going in.
The international rescue effort has gripped Thailand for more than a week. Cave diving experts flew in from the UK, and 17 US air force rescue and survival specialists travelled from Japan to join the 132 Thai army, navy and police officers working day and night to try to find the group.
US navy Seals reached a T-junction deep into the cave, one or two miles from where the boys were believed to be, on Saturday. Other divers including Thai Seals made progress through the passageway on Monday, after the high waters began to recede.US navy Seals reached a T-junction deep into the cave, one or two miles from where the boys were believed to be, on Saturday. Other divers including Thai Seals made progress through the passageway on Monday, after the high waters began to recede.
Narongsak said medical teams have been sent inside the cave and it would take them around four hours to assess the group’s health and how fit they are before coming up with a strategy to get them out.Narongsak said medical teams have been sent inside the cave and it would take them around four hours to assess the group’s health and how fit they are before coming up with a strategy to get them out.
Narongsak said they had been fixing rope lines along the passageway and distributed oxygen tanks along their route, allowing them to advance through the exceptionally narrow passageway unencumbered by bulky equipment. Other teams worked to pump out floodwater and divert groundwater, he said. The divers located the missing group about 300-400 metres past a section of the cave that was on higher ground and was thought to be where the team members and their coach may have taken shelter.
“When the medics have evaluated the kids, we will care for them until they have enough strength to move by themselves, and then we will evaluate the situation on bringing them out again later,” Narongsak said.
He explained that the divers had fixed rope lines along the passageway and distributed oxygen tanks along their route, allowing them to advance through the exceptionally narrow passageway unencumbered by bulky equipment. Other teams worked to pump out floodwater and divert groundwater, he said.
“These are challenging conditions and there’s a lot of consideration for safety as well as, the environment outside is contributing to the environment inside,” said Jessica Tait, a US air force captain who is part the operation.“These are challenging conditions and there’s a lot of consideration for safety as well as, the environment outside is contributing to the environment inside,” said Jessica Tait, a US air force captain who is part the operation.
Several teams trekked into the thick jungle above the cave, desperately looking for new openings that might lead to the trapped boys. One group drilled into a 40-metre chimney that led to a muddy chamber, and helicopters carrying food, water and medical supplies were dispatched to the area. Thailand’s prime minister, Prayuth Chan-ocha, thanked the international experts and rescuers who helped locate the missing for their “tremendous efforts”.
The Thai government and Thai people “are grateful for this support and cooperation, and we all wish the team a safe and speedy recovery,” Prayuth’s office said.
The boys, members of the Moo Pa academy, reportedly knew the site well and had visited it many times before, buoying hopes that they might have trekked to a large airy chamber in the centre.The boys, members of the Moo Pa academy, reportedly knew the site well and had visited it many times before, buoying hopes that they might have trekked to a large airy chamber in the centre.
They cycled to the cave with their coach after football practice and are thought to have crawled in through a narrow 15-metre tunnel that became completely flooded due to almost non-stop heavy rain.They cycled to the cave with their coach after football practice and are thought to have crawled in through a narrow 15-metre tunnel that became completely flooded due to almost non-stop heavy rain.
Overjoyed relatives who had clustered near the cave in an increasingly desperate vigil hugged and smiled as news that the boys had been found filtered back. Rescuers found their bicycles, football boots and backpacks near the cave’s entrance and discovered handprints and footprints further in.
“I’m so glad ... I want to him to be physically and mentally fit,” said Tinnakorn Boonpiem, whose 12-year-old son, Mongkol, is among the 13. Tham Luang cave is one of Thailand’s longest and one of the toughest to navigate, with snaking chambers and narrow passageways. A sign outside the site warns visitors not to enter the cave during the rainy season between July and November.
“I found out from the television ... I’m so happy I can’t put it into words,” another relative of one of one of the group told television reporters with tears of joy streaming down his cheeks. In a complex and potentially dangerous operation, rescue workers will now have to work out how to bring the group several miles through the cave, which is still partially submerged and is linked by tight passages.
Earlier on Monday divers took advantage of a brief window of good weather to edge further into the cave, with the water levels dropping slowly but steadily every hour thanks to round-the-clock pumping. Anmar Mirza, a leading American cave rescue expert, told Associated Press many challenges remained. He said the primary decision was whether to try to evacuate the boys and their coach or to feed supplies to them.
They had hoped to find the “Wild Boar” team on an elevated ledge dubbed “Pattaya beach”. “Supplying them on site may face challenges depending on how difficult the dives are,” said Mirza, the coordinator of the US National Cave Rescue Commission.
But the boys had retreated 300-400 metres further as the ledge was submerged, Narongsak said. “Trying to take non-divers through a cave is one of the most dangerous situations possible, even if the dives are relatively easy. That also begets the question: if the dives are difficult then supply will be difficult, but the risk of trying to dive them out is also exponentially greater.”
Rescue workers will now have to work out how to bring the group several miles through the cave – which is still partially submerged and is linked by tight passages.
Anmar Mirza, a leading American cave rescue expert, told Associated Press many challenges remained for the rescuers. He said the primary decision was whether to try to evacuate the boys and their coach or to supply them in place.
“Supplying them on site may face challenges depending on how difficult the dives are,” Mirza, coordinator of the US National Cave Rescue Commission, said. “Trying to take non-divers through a cave is one of the most dangerous situations possible, even if the dives are relatively easy. That also begets the question: if the dives are difficult then supply will be difficult, but the risk of trying to dive them out is also exponentially greater.”
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