Thailand - FOUND ALIVE - Officials Believe 12 Boys And Coach Trapped In Cave , 23 June 2018

[*Verdigris]

Here is the diagram from the BBC. It shows they are 800 meters to 1 kilometer below the surface.

The Brits behind the Thai cave boys search

There's one section in there that says "Full climbing gear needed"
--huh??? As far as I know none of the boys went in equipped with full climbing gear...?
...

 

[Elainera]

I don't know anything about scuba diving. It has been said multiple times that it would be very dangerous to bring the boys out that way. But why exactly? Lights have been installed. They will have oxygen and will be connected to the professional front and back divers. Don't they just have to pull them along and the boy simply lies still? It's not like the boys have to propel themselves or look/feel for their way, it'll be all done for them. What exactly is it that is so dangerous? The possibility of a panic? Sorry if this is a stupid question.

 

[sweetcaro]

I pondered the possibility of removing some of the rock in the smaller parts of the passages to make them easier to go through. I have no idea if it's possible, I'm sure it's one thing they considered. They must have brainstormed so many possibilities.

 

[Elainera]

amanda hodge‏ @hodgeamanda

Thai Navy SEALS prepare to begin evacuations as early as tomorrow as full day of sunshine and sustained pumping reduces water levels and eases previous fast currents inside #ThamLuangCave

https://twitter.com/hodgeamanda/status/1014446861002813440

 

[Elainera]

"Royal Thai Navy SEALs have also been installing oxygen tanks along the route the 13 will be led out of the cave with four tanks devoted to each team member."

"Removal of the 13 from the cave is still predicated on drainage of water from its caverns with plans in place in the case of continued heavy rain."

"Royal Irrigation Department (RID) Director-General Thongplew Kongchan indicated waters in the cave have reduced significantly and RID officials are also looking to block inflows from above the cave. They are to create bypasses for inflows to allow rescue operations to continue unimpeded."

http://thainews.prd.go.th/website_en/news/news_detail/WNSOC6107040010006

 

[Elainera]

"As new videos from inside cave emerge, Thai rescue chief says storm could ‘fully flood’ it"

"Ruengrit Changkwanyuen, a coordinator of the Thai contingent of the international cave diving team that located the boys on Monday night, said the group was on high ground and safe from flash flooding.

“But rescuers have to work quickly because by Friday a storm is coming, and if the rain starts again the cave is going to be fully flooded,” Changkwanyuen said. “If that happens it will be almost impossible to send supplies or keep in touch with them.”

Thai cave rescue: boys 'learning to dive' as authorities race against time to free them

OMG I hope they get moving soon!! So scary.

 

[CoverMeCagney]

Oh god, this is even more nail biting than last nights penalties! Wish it could be over just as quickly, and with such a good outcome.

 

[Amonet]

I believe the Quecreak miners were trapped 73 meters below the surface. These kids are trapped over 800 meters below the surface. A better example would be the Copiapo mine rescue. In that case it took rescuers two and a half months to drill down 638 meters to reach the miners. To drill a rescue shaft down to this cave could take at least three months. It could take a lot longer depending on how many exploratory shafts they would have to drill before they hit the cave. By that time the rainy season would be over and they could just walk out.

That said, I think they should get started drilling a rescue shaft anyway, just in case. But it would probably be a waste of time and money. I'm not sure if they have the funds for it or not.

The other day I watched a little bit of a video about the Chilean miners' rescue. They had a lot of trouble with the drilling, one of the first attempts was about a meter off when it got to the right level, and I think the tunnels where the miners were stuck were a lot larger than where these Thai lads are stuck.

 

[Seattle1]

'Everybody needs to pray': Trapped cave boys smile in new video as it emerges they could be taught how to swim and dive TODAY and British expert says we will know if they will survive in the next 24 hours

• Twelve Thai boys aged 11-16 and football coach were lost in Thamg Luang cave in Chiang Rai for nine days
• Officials faced choice to keep the terrified boys in the cave for up to four months or make them swim out
• Vern Unsworth, a British cave explorer, has said we will know if the boys will survive within the next 24 hours
• Thai Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda has said boys will be taught to swim on Wednesday or Thursday

By NICK FAGGE IN MAE SAI, THAILAND, AND JULIAN ROBINSON AND CHARLIE MOORE FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 05:33 EDT, 3 July 2018 | UPDATED: 06:56 EDT, 4 July 2018

With heavy monsoon rains expected in the next three days which could cut the boys off from help and supplies, they have taken the 'unbelievably dangerous' option to chaperone them 1.5miles to the cave entrance through water likened to 'cold coffee'.

Thai Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda has said the boys' only chance is to swim out through the flooded underground network and that swimming lessons will start on Wednesday or Thursday.

He said on Wednesday: 'There are no other options besides getting them out through the flooded passages.'

 

[Sarahlou]

What a nightmare this is. I feel panicked just thinking of being stuck there. Poor boys

 

[JDG]

Experts cast doubt on proposed plan to have trapped soccer team scuba dive out of Thailand cave

Experts in cave diving say a plan floated to extract 12 boys and their soccer coach from a cave in Thailand by teaching them on the fly to scuba dive through treacherous floodwaters may not be the best option.

"Cave diving is a very technical skill and it's extremely dangerous, especially for an untrained diver," Anmar Mirza, coordinator of the U.S. National Cave Rescue Commission, told ABC News. "So they may end up being better off trying to supply them in the cave until they can be gotten out by other means."

Experts cast doubt on plan to have trapped soccer team scuba dive out of cave

This always has been the most dangerous way of removing them. These kids cannot even swim, never mind are they in condition (mentally/physically) to dive.

 

[CoverMeCagney]

IF they will survive???!! This is awful....

 

[Amonet]

This always has been the most dangerous way of removing them. These kids cannot even swim, never mind are they in condition (mentally/physically) to dive.

The way I see it the boys don't have to learn in 48 hours how to swim and become expert cave divers. What I think they need to do is get used to the feeling of being completely immersed in the water and strong enough to follow the guide-ropes by themselves as much as possible.

The lads seem very compliant, which I think is perfect. Some of them looked a bit more nervous than others at having the cameras on them, but overall I thought their psychological health for achieving the exit safely looked about the best you could wish for (I'm no expert, that's just my personal thoughts from looking at their eyes, how relaxed their faces and bodies looked and how willing some were to give a nice smile for the camera).

Coming out the caves is going to be very different than it was going in. But they did have the strength of will and body to go all that distance in the dry cave by themselves.

The articles about John and Rick have mentioned multiple times about their calm demeanor, and I think all the divers will share that with the lads down there and it will be infectious and help them not to panic. I think the rescuers will make sure each boy/young man is prepared for what they're going to experience but they'll phrase everything in terms of "it's going to be tough and uncomfortable, but you can do it".

 

[Seattle1]

Ben Reymenants, a Thai-based Belgian diver who was part of the same rescue mission as the British duo, warned that it could become a race against time for the Thai authorities and for the boys.

'They can't swim, so they definitely can't dive,' he told Sky News. 'The easiest [option] would be that they keep pumping the water out of the cave. They need another three or four feet so they can literally float them out with life jackets, but time is not on their side. They're expecting heavy thunderstorms and rain which might flood the entire cave system.'

He also shed some light on how the boys and their coach, Ekkapol Chantawong, 25, ended up in this ghastly situation in the first place.

It was apparently a local initiation ceremony for boys to run to the end of a cave tunnel and write their name on the wall before running back. (BBM)

Thailand cave rescue: Intense rescue efforts as relatives wait for news

 

[enelram]

As an amateur diver in my past life, I agree with the experts that
coming out now- packaged- is very very risky. But my
concern about waiting for monsoon season to be over in October
is this: Since no one has ridden out the monsoon season in the
cave, how do they know their 'safe area' would not also be flooded
during heavy rains. this is a life and death dilemma.

 

[Gardener1850]

I don't know anything about scuba diving. It has been said multiple times that it would be very dangerous to bring the boys out that way. But why exactly? Lights have been installed. They will have oxygen and will be connected to the professional front and back divers. Don't they just have to pull them along and the boy simply lies still? It's not like the boys have to propel themselves or look/feel for their way, it'll be all done for them. What exactly is it that is so dangerous? The possibility of a panic? Sorry if this is a stupid question.

I don't know much about scuba diving either. But I think they will have to learn to kick and pull themselves. They will be fighting against a running current in the water. And some passages are so small the Navy Seals could not get through with their oxygen tanks on their backs. I think that there is a danger of one of the boys hitting jagged rocks and knocking their mask or equipment off under water. Which leads to panic and drowning if they can't get them out of the underwater tunnels and to a surface quickly. It would be better if they could drain enough water to have headroom in all the chambers. JMO.

 

[Seattle1]

The other day I watched a little bit of a video about the Chilean miners' rescue. They had a lot of trouble with the drilling, one of the first attempts was about a meter off when it got to the right level, and I think the tunnels where the miners were stuck were a lot larger than where these Thai lads are stuck.

I very much agree. Given time, drilling into the chamber and extracting the group would be my choice. Even so, finding a location for a way in could take longer than creating a shaft large enough to remove the boys! I'm not liking the added stress and urgency the team is facing.....

 

[JDG]

As an amateur diver in my past life, I agree with the experts that
coming out now- packaged- is very very risky. But my
concern about waiting for monsoon season to be over in October
is this: Since no one has ridden out the monsoon season in the
cave, how do they know their 'safe area' would not also be flooded
during heavy rains. this is a life and death dilemma.

They don't know if there are any safe areas. Also, think about the lack of sanitation over a 4 month period, disease potential etc. Those waters are infested with dead animals and the water is black from pollution. Its a cave, not a swimming pool.

If we are to believe yesterdays news, the boys were being acclimatized to being in the water, given swim lessons and scuba gear to 'play' with.....I suspect they were trying to see if they had any potential for getting them out. Without food for 10 days, they are in a weakened state.....possibly a couple of days food will help but not replenish their strength. Cant imagine how they'll be if forced to stay there for 4 months. Also cannot imagine getting them through all that water, very narrow openings etc without them panicking. A full out panic could cost some of them their lives. Im not referring to 'nervousness' nor a 'panic attack' but a full blown panic. Remember, you don't which way is up, down or sideways in that black bottomless water. Wishing them well.

 

[Wyle_E_Coyote]

They expected Pattaya Beach to be dry. It sounds to me like they originally thought waiting out the wet season was viable, but when they found Pattaya Beach completely flooded they realized there may not be anywhere in the cave that would stay dry . As risky as diving them out is, it's probably the only way to save them .

 

[Bravo]

Yes as much as I wish there was another way I think now is go time. We just need one more miracle.