photo credit:  Ethan Daniels // Shutterstock

All 12 boys of the youth soccer team, ages 11-16, and their 25-year-old coach, have been freed from the cave in northern Thailand after 2 weeks of being trapped in the flooded cave system. The past 3 day have been dedicated to rescue the team, having to take 10 hour breaks at a time after rescue the soccer team in groups of 4 at a time. The rescue missions themselves taking about 9 hours to complete, from the 19 divers entering the cave to bringing out the boys and coach.

Each boy was accompanied by 2 divers by a thin line, while wearing a full-face diving mask. The divers were able to navigate the variety of tunnels and passageways of the flooded cave system using a static rope they put in place leading to and from the cave’s entrance.

The team of 12 boys, and their coach have been stuck in a cave for the past 2 week, becoming trapped on June 23 when rising flood water cut off the exit, deep inside the cave. After working around the clock to figure out the best way to save all 13 people from the flooded cave system, an international team of rescuers have successfully saved all 12 early Tuesday morning.

All 13 rescued are recovery in a nearby hospital. They will likely stay for the next 7 days due to weakened immune systems and as doctors watch for symptoms of “cave disease”, an infection caused by breathing in spores of a fungus often found in bird and bat droppings.

Written by Clarke Jones

Source: CNN 

https://www.cnn.com/2018/07/09/asia/thai-cave-rescue-mission-intl/index.html