Almost there
RESCUERS continued their attempts last night to rescue the last of the 12 boys and their football coach who had been trapped in Tham Luan Nang Non cave, in Thailand, since June 23.
Late last night, another three boys were brought to safety, leaving just one boy and their coach to be rescued.
The third day’s rescue operation at the cave in northern Thailand began yesterday afternoon (NZ time).
Local governor Narongsak Osottanakorn said 19 divers were involved in bringing the boys and their coach through a maze of flooded tunnels.
A medic and three Thai Navy Seals who have stayed with the boys on a small, dry shelf deep in the flooded cave would also come out, he said.
‘‘We expect that if there is no unusual condition . . . the four boys, one coach, the doctor, and three Seals who have been with the boys since the first day will will come out today,’’ he told a media conference, to loud cheering.
The plight of the boys and their coach has riveted Thailand and much of the world — from the heartsinking news they were missing to the first flickering video of the huddle of anxious yet smiling boys when they were found 10 days later by a pair of British divers.
They were trapped in the Tham Luan Nang Non cave that became flooded by monsoon rains while they were exploring it after a football practice.