Thai cave rescue
World watches anxiously as boys slowly brought out
With the first of the monsoon rains already falling on the limestone hills above their heads, Thai Navy Seals and elite cave divers from around the world on Sunday pulled off what many thought was impossible – guiding four boys through a terrifying underwater journey in one of the most daring rescue operations of modern times.
But as the exhausted rescuers emerged from the Tham Luan cave system in northern Thailand they allowed themselves only brief smiles and no cheering. Their biggest challenge lay ahead.
A new storm and heavy rain was setting in, accelerating their race against time to free eight more members of a Thai football team and their 25-year-old coach from a flooding cave 4km inside a mountain.
Of further concern was that the first four boys who were guided out by divers in the high risk operation on Sunday were the strongest of the group. It was unclear how the weaker boys would manage.
The Wild Boars football team and their assistant coach went missing after heavy rains blocked the exit of the cave complex they had been exploring after a football practice on June 23. The group was found on a ledge in an air pocket 4km inside the cave on July 2 by two Britons rated among the world’s best cave divers.
Another challenge facing the rescuers was that all air tanks and other systems had to be reinstalled and synchronised before the second leg of the operation could go on. But the rescuers dared not wait.
“If we wait and rainwater comes in, our readiness will be lower than now,” said rescue chief Narongsak Osottanakorn. The rescue effort has already been temporarily halted twice. Downpours brought fast-moving floods into the cave and water pumps had to be shipped in to drain rising, murky floodwaters. Drones were even dispatched to find new vents in the maze of tunnels leading to the cave.
The second blow was on Friday – the death of a diver, Thai Navy Seal Saman Kunan who ran out of oxygen while helping to run an airline to the boys.
His death raised serious doubts over the safety of attempting a rescue through the cave’s cramped and waterlogged passageways.
World experts warned that Saman’s death showed “in stark terms the dangers associated with caves, especially those with long sections of passage with deep water or those entirely filled with water”.
Diving out was certainly always considered the most dangerous option.
“It’s dangerous [even] to the most experienced divers to go through,” one diver said. “It’s pretty scary.”
The authorities had looked at several possible strategies, including drilling an escape shaft from above or pumping out enough water to enable the team to walk out. But as teams pumped out water around the clock more rain began to fall and even more was forecast.
Oxygen was already in short supply – so much so that out on the mountainside a team of bird’s nest collectors were deployed to scour the foliage in search of new openings into the cave roof. More than 100 vents were already being drilled into the mountainside.
Then on the weekend a scrawled message reportedly emerged from the team’s coach, offering his “apologies” to the parents of the boys.
And fresh rains began to fall. The rescuers had no choice, they had to act fast. Inside the cave the boys were given rudimentary lessons on how to use a diving mask and breathing apparatus.
At 9am on Sunday 13 international divers set off to reach the trapped group. They were supported by a 90-strong team of Thai Navy Seals and elite divers from around the world. They reached the boys, gave four of the boys “positive pressure” full-face masks to stop water leaking in and then began guiding four them boys out on a route that required them to swim for a full kilometre underwater before reaching the part of the cave where the flooded section ended. They clung to a guide rope to ensure they did not panic or lose their way and as they squeezed through gaps just 38cm wide rescue divers had to remove their oxygen tanks and push the equipment ahead of them.
The first survivor clambered to safety at 5.40pm local time.
While little was revealed about the medical condition of the survivors, their ordeal is likely to take both a psychological and physical toll. Medical staff checked the boys’ breathing and looked for signs of hypothermia or any symptoms of the deadly diseases that afflict miners and underground explorers. “Cave disease”, an airborne lung infection caused by bat and bird droppings, can be fatal if untreated.
The rescued boys would not initially be allowed physical contact with their parents.
“They will be kept away from their parents for a while because we are concerned about infections,” Narongsak said, adding that doctors would decide on family visits “at a distance or through glass”.
At 11am yesterday the rescue team was back in the cave complex. It was “D-Day”, said Narongsak. Rain was falling. A storm was setting in.
“All the equipment is ready. Oxygen bottles are ready. There’s no other day. Otherwise we lose the opportunity.”
He expected “good news” in hours. By 5pm eight of the team had been rescued – five remain trapped. The rescue so far has been an extraordinary victory in an unfolding drama in which has Thailand and the world still holding its breath. — Telegraph Media Group and AFP
All the equipment is ready. There’s no other day. Otherwise we lose the opportunity Narongsak Osottanakorn