MAE SAI, Thailand — At least 4 boys have been rescued from a flooded Thai cave, Thai navy SEALS told the Associated Press. The rescue operation continues.
Sunday morning, ambulances were seen leaving the site in Chiang Rai where 12 boys and their coach have been trapped since June 23.
Officials heading the rescue operation said the healthiest boys were taken out of the cave first. Officials said the next phase of the operation will start in 10 - 20 hours. They said the operation is going better than expected.
BREAKING: Thai navy SEALS say four soccer team members have been taken out of the cave where they had been trapped.
— The Associated Press (@AP) July 8, 2018
Earlier Sunday, Thai navy SEALs, who have been spearheading the rescue effort for the 12 boys and their soccer coach, have posted a photo on their Facebook page with a vow to bring the trapped team home from a flooded cave.
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The unit says in a message: “We, the Thai team and the international team, will bring the Wild Boars home.” That’s the name of the young boys’ team.
The risky diving operation to bring them out has started and the first boy is expected to be out of the cave around 9 p.m. Sunday (10 a.m. ET) at the earliest. Rescuers say it may take 2-4 days for the entire team to reach safety, depending on conditions inside the cave.
The local governor in charge of the rescue says the mission was launched Sunday morning because floodwaters inside the cave are at their lowest level in days and rains forecast to hit the region risk flooding the cave again.
A Thai army commander says the ongoing rescue of 12 boys and their coach could take 2-4 days depending on conditions inside the partially flooded cave.
According to Maj. Gen. Chalongchai Chaiyakam, the 13 “will continuously come out in approximately 2-4 days, which all may change depending on weather and water conditions.”
The governor in charge of the operation says two divers will accompany each boy as they are gradually extracted. The operation began at 10 a.m. and he said it would take at least 11 hours for the first person to be rescued.
Cox Media Group
