2LT National News

BANGKOK, Thailand – Over the last nine days, the world has watched with unwavering hope, as efforts to rescue 13 people in Thailand hit one hurdle after another, and eventually bore result on Monday.

The plight of 12 young boys and their football coach, who went missing inside a cave in northern Thailand, has managed to enthrall the world to the extent that over the last nine days, the cave mission unfolding in a remote jungle in the southeast Asian country, has drawn not only global attention but an outpouring of emotion so strong, that several countries have volunteered and sent some of their best divers to aid in the rescue operation. 

It all started on June 23, when the 12 young boys aged between 11 to 16, all members of the Moo Pa (Wild Boar) football team and their 25-year-old assistant coach, identified as Ekkapol Janthawong, went to explore the fourth longest cave in Thailand, the Tham Luang Nang Non cave.

Investigators learnt that the coach is known to have occasionally taken the team out on day trips and had also taken them to the same cave two years ago.

Curious to unveil its dark secrets, the group was believed to have walked so deep within that they didn’t emerge outside for hours, leading their frantic relatives to seek help.

After being alerted, investigators reached the spot and found abandoned bikes belonging to the boys at the entrance of the cave, after which heavy rain sent torrents of water flooding through the cave.

Over the last nine days, relatives have camped outside the cave, placing everything from fruits and sweets to sugary drinks on mats outside the cave, as an offering to the mountain spirits that they believe protect the cave and the forest. 

Yet, as the desperate rescue mission continued in the dense jungle-covered and muddy mountainside, worsening conditions challenged the team as relentless rains continued to flood the cave entrance.

The team was focussed on swimming through tiny spaces and eliminated the risk of going too far into flooded passages, however, the darkness inside the case, along with water flooding into all available space complicated efforts as the debris and mud further reduced visibility.

The teams have also tried a wide variety of strategies, including usage of powerful industrial water pumps, drilling through rock to drain water, deploying drones equipped with thermal cameras, sending an underwater robot to analyze the depth and condition of the cave, and even using sniffer dogs to search for the missing group.

Meanwhile, shamans and Buddhist monks have held prayers at the mouth of the cave, imploring the spirits to return the boys safely.

As days passed by, Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha arrived at the site and reassured relatives of the missing people, even as hopes of their survival, seemed to be fading.

By Monday morning, the rescue mission, which initially involved Thai Royal Navy Seal divers, local military, police and volunteers, grew to include over 1,000 people, including teams from China, Myanmar, Laos, Australia, the U.S., and the U.K.

Nine days after the search initially began, all 13 people were found by two British rescuers, who arrived in the country last week to assist in the operation.

The two British divers, believed to be Rick Stanton and John Volanthen, were exploring the area where the rescue team believed the missing group might have found some safety on a ledge in an underground chamber nicknamed Pattaya Beach.

However, after a marathon search operation in the area specified, the divers found the group 400m away, as they moved to higher ground to avoid the rising water.

Thai Navy SEAL special forces posted a video on Facebook, in which one of the divers is heard trying to communicate with the group in English.

The diver asks the group, that had been sitting on a ledge above water in a cavern, “How many of you?”

A reply is heard, “Thirteen!”

Almost heaving a sigh of relief, the diver replies, “Thirteen? Brilliant!”

The group asks the diver when they would be taken to safety, to which, the diver replies, “Not today. There’s two of us. We have to dive. We are coming. OK? Many people are coming. We are the first.”

Amid attempts to express that they are hungry, one of the boys ask the diver what day is it and hears, “Monday, Monday. You have been here… 10 days. You are very strong.”

When the divers begin to leave, reassuring the group they would return with help, one of the boys screams, “Thank you so much.”

Addressing a press conference at the command centre at the cave entrance, Narongsak Osottanakorn, Governor of Chiang Rai declared on Monday, “They are all safe but the mission is not completed. Our mission is to search, rescue and return. So far we just found them. Next mission is to bring them out from the cave and send them home.”

He said that Thai navy Seals had found the group in the six-mile Tham Luang Nang Non cave, on the border with Laos and Myanmar, “all with signs of life.”

He explained that while some teams continued to pump out floodwater and divert groundwater, the divers advanced through an exceptionally narrow passageway, by fixing rope lines along the passageway and distributing oxygen tanks along their route.

Even though rising water and mud continues to impede access, all efforts are now focussed on extracting the party safely.

Osottanakorn told reporters that they would continue to drain water out of the cave while sending doctors and nurses to dive into the cave to check the health of the boys and their coach.

He said, “When the medics have evaluated the kids, we will care for them until they have enough strength to move by themselves, and then we will evaluate the situation on bringing them out again later.”

Reports have noted that the boys are around a mile and a half underground and that it could be days until they are successfully brought to the surface. 

Later in the day, Thailand’s prime minister, Prayuth Chan-ocha, thanked the international experts and rescuers for their “tremendous efforts.”

A statement released by the PM’s office said that the Thai government and Thai people “are grateful for this support and cooperation, and we all wish the team a safe and speedy recovery.”