Thais debate quick cave rescue of soccer team as rain subsides

Decision hinges on boys’ health, ability to leave with scuba divers

Days after a young Thai soccer team was discovered alive in a flooded cave, rescuers and government officials were considering a hurried evacuation attempt.

It was the third day of relatively little rainfall. Storms could flood the passageway to the boys and their coach, delaying rescue efforts.

But several factors weighed against such a decision. Officials said the boys were still relatively weak, even after a few days of food and medicine. And very basic training for them in how to navigate cramped and flooded passageways, in unfamiliar breathing equipment, had only begun — in anticipation of a hazardous journey that would take hours even if successful.

Videos taken by divers have given the outside world a glimpse of the team’s condition. The boys, ages 11 to 16, and their 25year-old coach appeared to be healthy and in good spirits, and divers have been taking them food, medicine and other supplies.

But any rescue will be complicated, and dangerous. Decisions must be made about how, and when, to get the starvation-weakened team back out through treacherous passages of the vast Tham Luang Cave network in northern Thailand, where they have been trapped since June 23. None of the boys have ever used scuba gear, and at least some don’t know how to swim.

Narongsak Osottanakorn, commander of the search and rescue operation, said Thai officials were weighing their options as they monitored weather forecasts — some believed a storm was on the way — and had yet to decide on the best course.

“If it rains and the water volume increases, we have to calculate, how much time do we have? How many hours, how many days?” Narongsak said. “If the water increases, we will go back to where we were.”

Some officials have advocated keeping the group in the cave for as long as four months, until the water level subsides. Others have argued for having experienced divers take them out of the cave complex much sooner.

Rescuers have prepared detailed plans and made their checklists, Narongsak said.

“How many sets of equipment needed? Thirteen sets,” he said. “How many people to assist? Two to one, three to one. Everything is planned. The ambulances are ready. But the plan for inside? Not everybody can go in. The hole is very narrow. Those are the obstacles.”

Meanwhile, teams continue to comb the mountain, looking for another way into the cave. But not all has gone smoothly. Narongsak said that one volunteer team had inadvertently pumped water back into the cave. He did not say how much water was misdirected or how long it went on.