The Copiapo rescue was an amazing effort on the behalf of many experts from all over. The hard part was that amazing depth. Every time I look into it, I get more and more blown away by how amazing the rescue was. They put many plans into place to succeed, just as they are formulating many plans for the rescue of the Thai soccer team members.
I am also impressed by the Beaconsfield mine rescue here in Oz twelve years ago. That was another disaster at a frighting depth, and it had a mostly happy ending.
Thing is, this Thai rescue is in a wet cave. I'm trying to find a map or diagram that shows the depth where these young men are sheltering. The problem with this particular sort of rescue isn't necessarily the depth though; the issue is that it is a (at least) partially "wet cave", which traversing-- even for expert cave divers-- is risky in the extreme. For an idea of how risky cave diving can be, look into the disappearance of
Ben McDaniel, a semi-experienced cave diver. It's quite the rabbit hole (and there are tonnes of theories on what happened, if he was even in the cave, etc.) On the wiki page I provided, it links to many articles and a documentary about the cave divers who searched-- repeatedly-- for him. And there was one volunteer diver who died looking for him.
All the above scares me for the young Thai team. However, they seem resilient. IF the monsoon holds off for a bit more time...IF they can pump out the lion's share of that murky water... IF they can find a natural chimney close to the young mens' location...IF they can find a way to teach basic swimming and scuba skills....
Yeah, that is a lot of ifs, but I have faith. Lots of plans & backup plans are being explored and the Thai government/military and the experts from all over the world are putting their best efforts and strategies into this rescue. Luck has been on their side thus far, right? Miracles happen every day and I am not giving up hope here. <3