Trapped after ‘dare’
THE kids stranded in a flooded cave in Thailand were taking part in an “initiation ritual” when they got trapped.
Rescuers have learned the young footballers had been trying to reach the end of the tunnel to write their name on a cavern wall.
Ben Reymenants, a member of the team trying to free them, said water levels had risen suddenly after the boys entered the cave system.
He said: “A flash flood because of sudden heavy rain locked them in.”
British divers found the 12 boys, aged 11 to 16, and their coach inside the Tham Luang cave system on Monday – nine days after they went missing.
The coach who led them inside, named as Ekapol Chanthawong, 25, could face negligence charges for putting them in danger.
Rescue teams have been giving the boys a crash course in diving in case they have to swim out of the cave system.
Divers, medics, counsellors and Thai navy SEALS were last night providing medicines and food while experts assessed conditions for getting them out safely.
But Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said: “The water is very strong and space is narrow. Extracting the children takes a lot of people.”
The SEALS posted photographs on Facebook showing their team trying to pump water from the cave.
About 120million litres had already been removed by late on Tuesday, at a rate of around 1.6m litres every hour.