There is a confirmed tweet by engineer Elon Musk stating he is sending his Boring Company engineers to talk with rescue officials on Saturday. His "hole digging" engineers wouldn't have an appointment to speak with rescue officials on Saturday if the boys were going to be dived out on Friday.
IMHO it's about making back-up plans in case the dive attempt doesn't work out, or if they need to leave the weakest boys in the cave.
They're not in a static situation where you can make a plan of action, plus a back-up, and stick to it. Everything is in flux...the rainfall, the water depth in the cave, the oxygen levels in the cave, the amount of water that can be pumped out each day, the number of on-site experts for each specialty.
So the preferred option is going to change as the conditions change and they look out to expected conditions in the next 6/12/24/48+ hours.
I think they're probably doing a lot better than the mixed up media reports make it sound. They're keeping all options open, and the only options they do have available are bad options, but what I think they're doing is trying to work on all three options (stay, dive, drill) to find the least-bad option. They're taking supplies into the boys in case they have to stay. They're draining the water in preparation for diving. They've got people all over the mountains damming streams and piping water off the mountain, spelunkers and bird nest hunters looking for new passages into the caves. Inside the caves they're trying to build up the strength of the boys, teach them to breathe in oxygen masks, how to get in and under the water comfortably and safely. They're developing trust between the boys and the divers, which is going to be essential.
Another problem is that when its assessed that a new piece of equipment could be useful and is offered to them it has to be sent to an airport, board the next plane to Thailand, get to Thailand, then get transported to Chiang Rai, then put in its correct place at the site, whether that's at the base or the top of the mountain.
I'm also doubting that they will make an announcement when it does actually start (a diving rescue). On one hand it might be preferable to just see a boy come out of the entrance? On the other hand they might say that there's a strong possibility of an attempt in the next 24 hours and get the extra prayers and good thoughts coming in from Thailand and around the world.
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