THERE were celebrations this morning when 12 schoolboys in soccer kits were discovered inside a cave. But their ordeal isn’t over.
THE 12 Thai schoolboys and their football coach had not seen the outside world, or another human being, in 10 days.
Overnight, as they huddled together in the dark, starving and terrified, the Thai navy burst into the flooded cave they were stuck in.
The world cheered the amazing footage, which showed the incredible moment the boys were found safe and well.
Despite that joyful moment, it is far from over for the young boys. In fact, an Australian cave diving expert has warned that the group may be trapped inside the cave for months.
The navy will now teach the boys how to dive, in order to evacuate them from the complex underground system.
Four months’ worth of food has been brought in to complete the rescue.
Cave Divers Association of Australia national director Peter Wolf told The Guardian the boys would not be able to exit the cave anytime soon as they are unable to swim.
“The length of the cave and the conditions that they’re actually diving in means there are probably very few people on the planet who can actually get those provisions to them,” he said.
“But the cave divers they’ve got over there are some of the most experienced in the world, especially when it comes to search and rescue operations.”
Thailand’s Army Chief says the boys must to learn how to dive, otherwise they risk waiting months for waters to recede.
The boys aged between 11 and 16, were discovered with their 25-year-old coach late Monday, rake thin but alive, huddled on a ledge deep inside a flooded cave nine days after they became trapped in a pitch black cave hemmed by rising floodwaters.
Much-needed food and medical supplies -- including high-calorie gels and paracetamol -- reached them Tuesday as rescuers prepared for the possibility that they may be there for some time.
“(We will) prepare to send additional food to be sustained for at least four months and train all 13 to dive while continuing to drain the water,” Navy Captain Anand Surawan said, according to a statement from Thailand’s Armed Forces.
The miracle rescue sparked jubilation across the country after a gruelling operation beset by heavy downpours and fast-moving flooding floods.
“We called this mission impossible because it rained every day... but with our determination and equipment we fought nature,” Chiang Rai governor Narongsak Osottanakorn said Tuesday.
“The doctor advised that we should provide several kind of medicine to prevent infection and other illness,” adding that medics had reached the young footballers.
The boys were found late Monday by British divers, with footage showing them emaciated and huddled on a mud mound deep inside the cave.
