Eight Thai Soccer Boys Now Out of Flooded Cave
Portrait of GV Wire News Director Bill McEwen
By Bill McEwen, News Director
Published 7 years ago on
July 9, 2018

Share

MAE SAI, Thailand — Four more of the youth soccer players trapped for over two weeks in a flooded cave in northern Thailand were brought out on Monday, an official said, bringing to eight the number extracted in the ongoing high-stakes rescue operation.
“The eighth person is out and the operation is done for today,” Sitthichai Klangpattana, flag officer to Thailand’s navy SEAL commander, told The Associated Press. “Four boys were brought out today.”

Four Boys and Coach Remain in Cave

He didn’t comment on the health of the boys or how well the operation had gone. After Monday’s rescue effort, four boys and their coach were still inside the labyrinth cave.
On Sunday, when the high-risk rescue operation to rescue the 12 boys and their coach began, teams of divers brought out four of the boys but waited several hours before confirming their safe rescue.
The Facebook page of the Thai Navy SEALs, who have been central to the rescue operation, was updated Monday night to say “two days, eight boars” — a reference to the Wild Boars, the name of the boys’ soccer team. The message, like most posted by the SEALs, ended with the fighting cheer adopted from the U.S. Navy: Hooyah.
Chiang Rai acting Gov. Narongsak Osatanakorn said earlier Monday that the second phase began at 11 a.m. and authorities “hope to hear good news in the next few hours.”
“All conditions are still as good as they were yesterday,” Narongsak told a news conference. “The boys’ strength, the plan — today we are ready like before. And we will do it faster because we are afraid of the rain.”

Around the Clock Pumping To Reduce Water Level

Authorities have been rushing to extract the boys, ages 11-16, and their coach from the cave as the annual monsoon bears down on the mountainous region in far northern Chiang Rai province. Workers have been laboring around the clock to pump water out of the cave, and authorities said Monday that heavy downpours overnight did not raise water levels inside.
The four boys guided from the cave Sunday in an urgent and dangerous operation that involved them diving through the cave’s dark, tight and twisting passages were happy and in good health, authorities said.
“This morning they said they were hungry and wanted to eat khao pad grapao,” Narongsak said, referring to a Thai dish of meat fried with chili and basil and served over rice.
Still, the four were undergoing medical checks in a hospital in the provincial capital and were not yet allowed close contact with relatives due to fear of infections. Relatives were able to see them through a glass partition, the governor said.

10 Days To Find Boys

The boys and their coach went exploring in the massive Tham Luang Nang Non cave on June 23 after a soccer practice, and were cut off when a rainstorm flooded the cave. A massive international search operation was launched and it took 10 days to locate the boys, who had taken shelter on a dry slope deep in the complex.
The search and rescue operation has riveted people both in Thailand and internationally, with journalists from across the globe traveling to this town along the border with Myanmar to report on the ordeal.
Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda had said early Monday that the same group of expert divers who took part in Sunday’s rescue would return to extricate the others because they know the cave conditions and what to do. He had said fresh air tanks needed to be laid along the underwater route.
Authorities have said extracting the entire team from the cave could take up to four days, but Sunday’s success raised hopes that it could be done faster.

Boys Began Training To Dive July 2

Sunday’s mission involved 13 foreign divers and five Thai navy SEALs. Two divers accompanied each of the boys, all of whom have been learning to dive only since July 2, when searchers found them.
Cave rescue experts have said they consider an underwater escape to be a last resort, especially with people untrained in diving.
The death Friday of a former Thai navy SEAL underscored the risks. The diver, the first fatality of the rescue effort, was working in a volunteer capacity and died on a mission to place air canisters along the passage to where the boys are, necessary for divers to safely travel the five- to six-hour route.
There were several concerns that prompted authorities to move forward with the plan to dive the boys out. One was that it was unknown how safe and dry the area where they had taken shelter would stay as Thailand’s rainy season, which lasts until at least late October, picks up pace.
The other, and perhaps more worrying, was that oxygen levels in the complex were falling close to dangerous levels.

DON'T MISS

23 for ’23: A Year in Photos

DON'T MISS

See How this Fresno roastery sends aid to Northern Thailand.

DON'T MISS

District Says Fresno Teachers Contract Proposal Would Bankrupt Budget Reserves by Year 3

DON'T MISS

Trump Vows to Ban Gaza Refugees, Expand Muslim Travel Ban If He Wins

DON'T MISS

The Supreme Court Orders Makers of Gun Parts to Comply with Rules on Ghost Guns

DON'T MISS

George W. Bush for Speaker? A Democratic Lawmaker Thinks It’s Possible

DON'T MISS

Former Navy IT Manager Gets Five Years for Hacking, ID Theft

DON'T MISS

Gunman Kills Two Swedes in Brussels, Prompting Terror Alert and Halt of Belgium-Sweden Soccer Match

DON'T MISS

Zakaria: The Best Response to Hamas Would Be to Keep the Saudi Deal Alive

DON'T MISS

Groundbreaking Human Brain Atlas Offers New Hope for Treating Neurological Disorders

UP NEXT

District to Fresno Teachers: Read Our Proposal Before Taking Strike Vote

UP NEXT

State Department Memo Warns US Diplomats: No Gaza ‘De-Escalation’ Talk

UP NEXT

George W. Bush for Speaker? A Democratic Lawmaker Thinks It’s Possible

UP NEXT

What Does Destroying Gaza Solve?

UP NEXT

Trump Vows to Ban Gaza Refugees, Expand Muslim Travel Ban If He Wins

UP NEXT

Gunman Kills Two Swedes in Brussels, Prompting Terror Alert and Halt of Belgium-Sweden Soccer Match

UP NEXT

Zakaria: The Best Response to Hamas Would Be to Keep the Saudi Deal Alive

UP NEXT

Fresno Politicians Say They Stand With Israel in Remarks at Cornerstone Church

UP NEXT

Oprah Winfrey Proposed 2020 Presidential Run with Mitt Romney, New Book Reveals

UP NEXT

Muslim Boy Killed and Woman Wounded in Illinois Hate Crime Motivated by Israel-Hamas War, Police Say

Portrait of GV Wire News Director Bill McEwen
Bill McEwen,
News Director
Bill McEwen is news director and columnist for GV Wire. He joined GV Wire in August 2017 after 37 years at The Fresno Bee. With The Bee, he served as Opinion Editor, City Hall reporter, Metro columnist, sports columnist and sports editor through the years. His work has been frequently honored by the California Newspapers Publishers Association, including authoring first-place editorials in 2015 and 2016. Bill and his wife, Karen, are proud parents of two adult sons, and they have two grandsons. You can contact Bill at 559-492-4031 or at Send an Email

You May like

Trump Vows to Ban Gaza Refugees, Expand Muslim Travel Ban If He Wins

1 year ago

The Supreme Court Orders Makers of Gun Parts to Comply with Rules on Ghost Guns

1 year ago

George W. Bush for Speaker? A Democratic Lawmaker Thinks It’s Possible

1 year ago

Former Navy IT Manager Gets Five Years for Hacking, ID Theft

1 year ago

Gunman Kills Two Swedes in Brussels, Prompting Terror Alert and Halt of Belgium-Sweden Soccer Match

1 year ago

Zakaria: The Best Response to Hamas Would Be to Keep the Saudi Deal Alive

1 year ago

Groundbreaking Human Brain Atlas Offers New Hope for Treating Neurological Disorders

1 year ago

Newsom Signs Law to Slowly Raise Healthcare Minimum Wage to $25

1 year ago

Former Fresno CC Coach Ed Madec Arrested for Allegedly Threatening to Kill Chancellor

1 year ago

Jim Jordan’s Rapid Rise Cheered by Trump and Far Right. Could It Make Him Speaker?

1 year ago

HOT OFF THE PRESS

23 for ’23: A Year in Photos

1 year ago

1 year ago

Trump Vows to Ban Gaza Refugees, Expand Muslim Travel Ban If He Wins

1 year ago

The Supreme Court Orders Makers of Gun Parts to Comply with Rules on Ghost Guns

Photo of a hacker typing on a laptop

1 year ago

Former Navy IT Manager Gets Five Years for Hacking, ID Theft

1 year ago

Gunman Kills Two Swedes in Brussels, Prompting Terror Alert and Halt of Belgium-Sweden Soccer Match

1 year ago

Zakaria: The Best Response to Hamas Would Be to Keep the Saudi Deal Alive

1 year ago

Groundbreaking Human Brain Atlas Offers New Hope for Treating Neurological Disorders

1 year ago

Newsom Signs Law to Slowly Raise Healthcare Minimum Wage to $25

1 year ago

Oprah Winfrey Proposed 2020 Presidential Run with Mitt Romney, New Book Reveals

1 year ago

Bulldogs Get a Bye Week to Heal After Gutting Out Win at Utah State

1 year ago

Trump Has Narrow Gag Order Imposed on Him by Federal Judge Overseeing 2020 Election Case