JOY AS BOYS AND COACH SAVED IN DARING THAI CAVE RESCUE
ADARING rescue mission in the treacherous confines of a flooded cave in Thailand has saved 12 boys and their football coach, who were trapped deep within the labyrinth.
The rescue operation ended an 18-day ordeal that claimed the life of an experienced volunteer diver and riveted people around the world.
Cheers erupted at a local government office where dozens of volunteers and journalists were awaiting news of whether the intricate and high-risk rescue mission had succeeded, as helicopters taking the boys to hospital roared overhead.
Thailand’s navy Seals, who were central to the rescue effort, said on their Facebook page that the remaining four boys and their 25-year-old coach were all brought out safely yesterday.
Eight of the boys were rescued by a team of 18 Thai and international divers on Sunday and Monday.
Two Welsh-based divers who discovered the trapped boys and their football coach are helping with their rescue from the cave.
Rick Stanton and John Volanthen, were the first rescuers to reach the group on Monday night and are believed to be part of the team.
The pair are part of the South and Mid Wales Cave Rescue Team (SMWCRT) and video footage captured the moment they discovered the missing boys.
“We are not sure if this is a miracle, a science, or what. All the 13 Wild Boars are now out of the cave,” the Seals said, referring to the name of the boys’ football team. “Everyone is safe.”
They said they were waiting for a medic and three Seals who had stayed with the boys in their dark refuge deep inside the cave complex to come out.
Payap Maiming, 40, who helped provide food and necessities to rescue workers and journalists, said a “miracle” had happened.
“I’m happy for Thais all over the country, for the people of Mae Sai, and actually just everyone in the world because every news channel has presented this story and this is what we have been waiting for,” she said.
“It’s really a miracle. It’s hope and faith that has brought us this success.”
The plight of the boys and their coach has captivated Thailand and much of the world - from the heartbreaking news that they were missing to the first flickering video of the huddle of anxious yet smiling boys when they were found 10 days later by the British divers.
One of the boys appeared to be wearing a red replica England football shirt.
They were trapped in the Tham Luan Nang Non cave on June 23, when they were exploring it after football practice and it became flooded by monsoon rains.
Each of the boys, aged 11 to 16 and with no diving experience, was guided out by a pair of divers in three days of intricate and high-stakes operations.
The route, in some places just a crawl space, had oxygen canisters positioned at regular intervals to refresh each team’s air supply.
Highlighting the dangers, a former Thai navy Seal died on Friday while replenishing the canisters.
Cave diving experts had warned it was potentially too risky to dive the youngsters out.
But Thai officials, acutely aware that the boys could be trapped for months by monsoon rains that would swell waters in the cave system, seized a window of opportunity provided by relatively mild weather.
A massive water pumping effort also made the winding cave more navigable.
The confidence of the diving team, and expertise specific to the cave, grew after its first successful mission.
Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, speaking before the final rescue was completed, said the boys were given an anti-anxiety medication to help with their perilous removal from the cave.
Asked at a press conference if the boys had been sedated, Mr Prayuth said: “Who would chloroform them? If they’re chloroformed, how could they come out? It’s called anxiolytic, something to make them not excited, not stressed.”
Mr Prayuth said the Tham Luan Nang Non cave would be closed for some time to make it safe for visitors.
The eight boys brought out by divers on Sunday and Monday were doing well and were in good spirits, a senior health official said.
They were given a treat yesterday: bread with chocolate spread that they had requested.
AS I waved my elder son off on his end-of-season football tour last weekend, his long list of instructions included to smile and not grunt, to be helpful, to behave... and not to go near any caves.
You can’t wrap them up in cotton wool, but when you hear about what can happen it does make you worry.
It feels like everyone has held a collective breath as the plight of the boys who were trapped deep within the labyrinth of the Thai caves for more than two weeks unfolded.
The image of the bicycles belonging to the 12 boys from the Moo Pa (Wild Boars) academy team and their coach lined up outside the cave was the first sign that something was wrong.
An innocent end-of-season treat had very quickly turned into a nightmare.
What followed was 18 days of highs and lows as the great joy of them being found soon turned to concern that they wouldn’t be able to get out safely, then fear as the precarious rescue mission got under way.
Thankfully, we have the happy ending that so many people around the world hoped and prayed for.
Surely it can’t be long before this story is turned into a movie, with the rescue team as the heroes!
The politicians said it is “hope and faith” that brought about the success, but it is also a testament to the positive way people react in time of adversity and despair.
From the medic and three navy Seals who stayed with the boys in their dark refuge deep inside the cave until they were rescued, to the diver who lost his life helping others and the optimism of the boys themselves as they stayed positive.
When they wrote letters to their families they were full of love and reassurance, with little thought about themselves.
From the boy who wrote, “Dear aunty and grandma, I am well. Please don’t worry too much about me and take care of yourselves. Aunty, please could you tell grandma to do vegetable juice and pork snack for me when I go out. Love you all”, to another who said: “I am fine but the weather is a little bit cold. Don’t worry about me and don’t forget to celebrate my birthday”, just about every letter had the words “don’t worry” to their loved ones.
The rescuers were from all over the world, including some from Wales, which just goes to show that kindness and bravery know no bounds of nationality, language, or skin colour.
At the end of the day, when we are up against it, people just want to help other people.
With so much depressing news from around the world, from crime and corruption to the frustration with our politicians, it is easy to feel jaded.
They say superheroes don’t really exist, but the kindness and bravery of this army of rescuers show that maybe they actually do.