The Thai cave rescue of 12 members of the Wild Boars soccer team, ages 11-16, and their 25-year-old coach is currently underway in Northern Thailand.
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The dangerous Thai cave rescue began late Saturday night after officials determined that conditions inside the cave were declining and that a small window of opportunity to save the soccer team had opened.
At 10am local time (11pm Saturday ET), an international contingency of 13 expert divers descended into the watery labyrinth of underground tunnels below the Mae Sai mountains to begin removing the boys 1 by 1. A master diver who is also a doctor was sent inside the cave to first evaluate the health of the boys. Once he determined they were all strong enough to endure the delicate and dangerous Thai cave rescue mission, the boys decided among themselves who would be the first to go.
First, a series of survival pods were set up at various intervals so as to allow the divers and boys an opportunity to decompress, rest, and eat. This was crucial since the dive team and boys were to contend with fast flowing water that was near freezing at certain points along the route. The rescue team and boys then had to dive, swim and climb their way to safety along pitch-black tunnels that were often barely big enough for an adult body to pass through.
The first boy was outfitted with a full face mask and oxygen tank then escorted by 2 dive experts along the treacherous trip to safety. The deep waters, the winding and often narrow passageways, and the virtually non-existent visibility required each boy to swim for nearly 5 hours before reaching complete safety. With the entire world watching and an international team of technical and medical crews assembled for their expertise, the mission commenced.
As of this writing, 4 of the young soccer players trapped for more than 2 weeks were successfully and miraculously rescued, prompting authorities to express encouragement that the operation went better than expected.
“After 16 days of waiting, we get to see the faces of the Wild Boars,” Chiang Rai Gov. Narongsak Osottanakorn said gleefully.
According to Narongsak, divers delivered the first boy from the cave at around 5:40pm local time and less than 8 hours after the Thai cave rescue operation began. The second boy came out 10 minutes later, then 2 hours later, 2 more boys were extracted 10 minutes apart. They were each immediately taken by helicopter to a hospital 35 miles away for emergency treatment and to be reunited with their families.
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Divers depleted all of the available oxygen supply after rescuing the first 4 boys, so the mission was halted for the night. Rescue efforts for the 8 remaining boys and their coach will resume sometime Monday once divers have rested and leaders have evaluated the rescue tactics.
On Sunday, billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk offered his assistance by building a “kid-sized” submarine to rescue the remaining boys. A multitude of world nations also offered to provide any additional help that may be needed.
Thai officials are currently examining all options before resuming rescue operations. However, they are pleased that mild weather and a break in the rains lowered flood waters inside the cave to levels that allowed a rescue to proceed. Their decision meant the boys encountered less of the narrow, winding tunnels inside the cave and were actually able to remove their scuba gear and walk portions of the route. With none of the boys knowing how to swim, officials say this last-minute decision to proceed with the Thai cave rescue mission was the correct and safest move to make.
This is a developing story. More information will be available as it comes.
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Thanks DJ.
Btw-as of this morning 8 boys have now been rescued – the rescue team is indeed acting with a sense of urgency.
I’ve been praying and I’ll keep praying that they all make it our safely.