Cautious, Careful, Desperate Emergency Rescue in Thailand

"This is a careful, delicate operation fraught with risk. But this rescue plan - daring, dangerous and complicated - is working. It's delivering success, against such difficult odds. Relief is starting to break the tension that's built over more than two weeks."
"There's been another pause here overnight. Nobody wants to rush. There's admiration for the dive team's dedication, their skill and experience. They've risen to this challenge. But four of the boys, and their football coach, are underground for a 17th night. On Tuesday we'll all hold our breath once more, in the hope of seeing them emerge."
Thai Navy Seals Facebook page update

 

The expected monsoon rains falling on the limestone mountain were responsible for the decision made to wait no longer to rescue the twelve boys and their coach of the Wild Boar soccer team stranded by floodwaters since June 23, in a northern Thailand cave complex, the Tham Luan cave system in Chiang Rai province.

"If we wait and the rain comes in the next few days, we will be tired again from pumping and our readiness would drop. If that's the case, then we have to reassess the situation."
"We can only carry on the operation once we are ready -- and this will be done soon, because the air tanks and other systems have to be reinstalled."
"Today is D-day. A new storm is coming. If we wait and rainwater comes in, our readiness will be lower than now. There is no other day that we are more ready than today. Otherwise, we will lose the opportunity."
Narongsak Osotanakorn, former Chaing Rai governor, Sunday night

That the rescue represents a dire emergency, and that this rescue throbs with sinister danger to all involved was brought  home two days earlier when a volunteer ex-Thai Navy SEAL diver lost his life after delivering food and oxygen supplies to the stranded boys when on his return trip back to the cave mouth he himself ran out of oxygen and perished. The plight of the boys facing the indomitable force of nature brought the attention of the world to this vibrant drama of survival.

The Thai navy SEALs were swiftly joined by experienced cave divers from the international community. Their expertise resulted in two British divers, considered the best in their field, discovering the whereabouts of the stranded group four kilometers into the cave and passage complex, seated on a shelf above floodwaters, where they had awaited rescue for a full ten days without food and with dwindling hope.

The boys, aged between 11 and 17, became trapped with their coach on 23 June  Getty Images

When the world heard that four of the boys had been guided underwater through that long and terrifying journey underwater, an exhalation of relief stirred the world. Those first four boys were selected as the strongest of the team, others were in more delicate physical condition from their ten-day privation, slowly starving to death, among them the 25-year-old coach.

All other possible escape routes -- from drilling escape shafts or pumping out enough water to enable them to walk out -- were abandoned when it became evident that oxygen in the cave was being depleted and the threat of the onset of heavy rains augured greater flooding issues, making escape even more dangerous. Even so, the option of diving out was recognized for the formidable danger it represented; that it was chosen made it clear that other options were simply unfeasible.

"Clearly there is a huge risk of someone panicking if they are not used to the diving environment. It happens to adults in the open water, never mind children in a dark cave", remarked Tony Haigh, spokesman for the British Cave Rescue Council. "I've no doubt some will be more apprehensive than others."

Saman Gunan lost his life during rescue efforts of twelve boys and their soccer coach from a flooded cave in Thailand. USA TODAY

None of the boys is able to swim. Other than the extensive diving lessons that took place since their discovery by the British divers, this would be their first real introduction to the medium of water as a gateway out of hell. The major risk in the venture of guiding them out through the floodwaters was seen to be that of running out of the air supply prematurely, the very thing that caused the death of former SEAL Saman Gunan.

Ambulances took their stations outside the cave complex in advance of the rescue attempt on Sunday and officials shifted the media away from the rescue site to enable the rescuers directly involved on the extraction to have free, unimpeded space. At 9:00 a.m. Sunday, thirteen divers advanced toward the trapped group supported by a team of 90 Thai navy SEALs and divers from Britain, Australia, the U.S., China and other involved nations.

The four selected boys were taken on a route underwater for a kilometer before they reached the area where the floodwaters were finally absent. Wearing "positive pressure" face masks preventing water leaking, clinging to a guide rope, squeezing through gaps of 40 centimetres in width, rescue divers removed the boys' oxygen tanks to push them forward ahead of the boys and the first of the rescued survivors reached safety at 5:40 p.m.

Now, it is eight out, four boys left to go along with their coach before the rescue is final and celebrations can begin.