July 12, 2018

On Tuesday, July 10, the last members of a youth soccer team of 12 boys and a coach were rescued from a flooded cave system in the southeast Asian nation of Thailand. The boys, aged 11 to 16, and the 25-year-old coach had been trapped in the extensive Tham Luang cave complex in northern Chiang Rai province since June 23. The team—known as the Wild Boars—was stranded by flood waters while on an outing in the caves, which are a popular recreational destination. Most of Tham Luang’s 6.2 miles (10 kilometers) of subterranean passages are dry, but they often flood during the rainy season.

Wild Boar teammates wave happily from a hospital in Chiang Rai, Thailand, after being rescued from the nearby Tham Luang cave complex in July 2018. Credit: Thailand Government Spokesman Bureau

For many days after the Wild Boars disappeared in the cave, people feared the worst as entrances were blocked by high waters. A massive rescue operation began that included 90 specially trained divers—40 from Thailand and 50 from countries all over the world—and hundreds of emergency and support personnel. The divers navigated the maze of pitch-black flooded caves, laying guide lines along the way to help find their way to and from the safety of the cave entrance. Narrow gaps in the submerged caves forced the divers to remove their oxygen tanks at times, while in dryer places the divers had to walk or climb the caves in their heavy and cumbersome gear. Divers searched the flooded passages, but they hoped to find the group in an air pocket of one of the partially flooded areas.

Click to view larger image
The last members of a youth soccer team were rescued from a cave system near Chiang Rai in far northern Thailand on July 10, 2018. Credit: WORLD BOOK map

Contact was at last made on July 2: the Wild Boars were safe, but understandably hungry, exhausted, and frightened. Rescue operations then kicked into high gear. If the kids and coach were not rescued quickly, further flooding in the area could leave them stranded underground for months. Diminishing oxygen levels in the cave system were also a concern. After the divers took supplies to the trapped team members and rigged a system to get them out, the first four of the boys—none of whom knew how to swim—were brought to safety on Sunday, July 8. Accompanied by two divers, each boy wore a full-face scuba helmet, wet suit, and boots. One diver swam ahead and carried the boy’s air tank. The boy was tethered to the lead diver as a second diver followed. Four more boys were rescued on Monday. The last group (including the coach) was greeted by cheers and sighs of relief at the cave entrance on Tuesday. The soccer team survived the 17-day ordeal relatively unharmed, but a Thai navy diver died on July 6 when he ran out of oxygen while trying to return to the cavern entrance.

The boys and coach are now recuperating at a hospital in Chiang Rai city, where they are temporarily quarantined from physical contact. The group drank water in the cave that was likely contaminated, and they were exposed to bird and bat droppings. Once cleared of the possibility of infection, they will get some long-awaited hugs. The boys lost an average of 4.4 pounds (2 kilograms) each. Despite calls for rich dishes of rice and pork, the hungry team must be fed blandly and slowly to prevent digestive upset. Like little movie stars, they are also wearing sunglasses as their eyes readjust to light.