Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Update: Thai Soccer Boys May Have To Swim Out of Cave
Bill McEwen updated website photo 2024
By Bill McEwen, News Director
Published 7 years ago on
July 3, 2018

Share

MAE SAI, Thailand — Heavy rains forecast for northern Thailand could worsen flooding in a cave where 12 boys and their soccer coach are waiting to be extracted by rescuers, possibly forcing authorities to have them swim out through a narrow, underwater passage in the cavern, a top official said Tuesday.
The 13, who disappeared when flooding trapped them in the cave they were exploring on June 23 after a soccer game, were found by rescue divers late Monday night in the cavern in northern Chiang Rai province during a desperate search. The effort drew international help and has riveted Thailand.
The boys, aged 11-16, and their 25-year-old coach were described as healthy and being looked after by seven members of the Thai navy SEALs, including medics, who were staying with them inside the cave. They were mostly in stable condition and have received high-protein drinks.

Cave Cannot Be Drained of Water

While efforts to pump out floodwaters are continuing, it’s clear that some areas of the sprawling cavern cannot be drained, said Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda, a member of Thailand’s ruling military junta. In order to get them out ahead of the bad weather forecast for later in the week, they might need to use diving gear while being guided by professional divers, he said.
Anupong said the boys would be brought out via the same complicated route through which their rescuers entered, and he conceded that if something went awry, it could be disastrous.
“Diving is not easy. For people who have never done it, it will be difficult, unlike diving in a swimming pool, because the cave’s features have small channels,” he said. “If something happens midway, it could be life-threatening.”
Video released by the Thai navy showed the boys in their soccer uniforms sitting in a dry area inside the Tham Luang Nang Non cave above the water as a light held by a rescuer was shone on their faces.

Another Option Is To Stay in Cave Up Until Water Clears

Cave rescue experts have said it could be safer to simply supply them where they are for now, rather than trying to have the boys dive out. That could take months, however, given that Thailand’s rainy season typically lasts through October.
SEAL commander Rear Adm. Arpakorn Yookongkaew said there was no rush to bring them out, since they’re safe where they are.
A doctor and a nurse were with them in the cave.
“We have given the boys food, starting from easily digested and high-powered food with enough minerals,” Arpakorn told a news conference.
Having them dive out of the cave was one of several options being considered, “but if we are using this plan, we have to be certain that it will work and have to have a drill to make sure that it’s 100 percent safe,” he said.
Chiang Rai provincial Gov. Narongsak Osatanakorn said the health of the boys and coach were checked using a field assessment in which red is critical condition, yellow is serious and green is stable.
“We found that most of the boys are in green condition,” he said. “Maybe some of the boys have injuries or light injuries and would be categorized as yellow condition. But no one is in red condition.”

Relatives Rejoiced When Boys Were Found

Relatives keeping vigil at the mouth of the cave since the ordeal began rejoiced at the news that their boys and their coach had been found.
“I want to give him a hug. I miss him very much,” said Tham Chanthawong, an aunt of the coach. “In these 10 days, how many million seconds have there been? I’ve missed him every second.”

AP Photo of rejoicing relatives of the Thai soccer boys
Family members smile after hearing the news that the missing 12 boys and their soccer coach have been found, in Mae Sai, Chiang Rai province, in northern Thailand, Monday, July 2, 2018. A Thai provincial governor says all 12 boys and their coach have been found alive in the cave where they went missing over a week ago in northern Thailand. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
 
Rescue divers had spent much of Monday making preparations for a final push to locate them, efforts that had been hampered by flooding that made it difficult to move through the tight passageways of muddy water.
A pair of expert cave divers from Britain found the group about 300-400 meters (yards) past a section of the cave on higher ground that was believed to be where they might have taken shelter.
In the 5-minute navy video, the boys were seen wearing their soccer uniforms and were calm, curious and polite. They also were keen to get some food.
After an initial exchange in which a rescuer determines that all 13 are present, one of the boys asked what day it was, and a rescuer replied: “Monday. Monday. You have been here — 10 days.”
The rescuer told them “you are very strong.” The traditional reserve of Thai children toward adults broke slightly after a while, and one boy told another in Thai, “Tell them we are hungry.”
“We haven’t eaten,” a boy said in Thai, then in English: “We have to eat, eat, eat!”
A rescuer assured them that “navy SEALs will come tomorrow, with food and doctors and everything.” At the end of the video, a boy asked in English, “Where do you come from?” The rescue diver replied, “England, UK.”
Besides the protein drink, Narongsak said they were given painkillers and antibiotics, which doctors had advised as a precaution.
He said officials had met and agreed on the need to “ensure 100 percent safety for the boys when we bring them out.”
“We worked so hard to find them and we will not lose them,” he said.

Cave Diver Surprised Boys Were Alive

Cave diver Ben Reymenants, part of the team assisting the rescue effort, told NBC’s “Today” show that he was “very surprised obviously that they are all alive and actually mentally also healthy.”
While they appear responsive, “they are very weak and very skinny,” he added.
Reymenants said the easiest option would be to “keep pumping the water out of the cave. They need another 3 or 4 feet so they can literally float them out with life jackets.”
“But time is not on their side,” he noted, because of the heavy rain forecast.
He added that two Thai navy doctors have volunteered to stay with them for months, if needed.

U.S. Divers Are Part of Rescue Effort

The British Cave Rescue Council, which has members taking part in the operation, said in a statement that “although water levels have dropped, the diving conditions remain difficult and any attempt to dive the boys and their coach out will not be taken lightly because there are significant technical challenges and risks to consider.”
Joining the British are other experts from around the world and teams from the U.S., Australia, China and elsewhere.
Authorities said efforts would continue outside the cave, where teams have been scouring the mountainside for other entrances to the caverns. Several fissures have been found and teams have explored some, although so far, none lead to the trapped boys.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

US Bond Funds Suffer Fifth Weekly Outflow on Tariff-Driven Inflation Fears

DON'T MISS

Trump Warns of Economic Slowdown Unless Fed Cuts Rates

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Will Sell Naming Rights for Clovis and Reedley Libraries

DON'T MISS

Steph Curry Scores 31 Points in the Warriors’ Victory Over the Rockets in Game 1

DON'T MISS

Pope Francis, First Latin American Pontiff, Dies on Easter Monday

DON'T MISS

Chargers in Need of Help at Wide Receiver and Tight End in the NFL Draft

DON'T MISS

Magic Happens When Kids and Adults Learn to Swim. Tragedy Can Strike if They Don’t.

DON'T MISS

Big Fresno Fair Board Will Be Led by an American Sikh for 1st Time

DON'T MISS

AI ‘Friend’ for Public School Students Falls Flat

DON'T MISS

Is a ‘Friend-Apist’ What We Really Want From Therapy?

UP NEXT

Chargers in Need of Help at Wide Receiver and Tight End in the NFL Draft

UP NEXT

Magic Happens When Kids and Adults Learn to Swim. Tragedy Can Strike if They Don’t.

UP NEXT

Yemen’s Houthi Rebels Report US Strikes in the Capital and a Coastal City

UP NEXT

Humanoid Robots Run a Chinese Half-Marathon Alongside Human Competitors

UP NEXT

Anti-Trump Protesters Turn Out to Rallies Across Country

UP NEXT

250 Years After America Went to War for Independence, a Divided Nation Battles Over Its Legacy

UP NEXT

Greg Cronin Fired as Coach of Anaheim Ducks After 2 Seasons

UP NEXT

Israeli Strikes on Gaza Kill More Than 90 People in 48 Hours, Palestinians Say

UP NEXT

US and Iran Advance Nuclear Talks to Expert Level After Rome Meeting

UP NEXT

Putin Announces an Easter Ceasefire as Russia and Ukraine Swap Hundreds of POWs

Bill McEwen,
News Director
Bill McEwen is news director and columnist for GV Wire. He joined GV Wire in August 2017 after 37 years at The Fresno Bee. With The Bee, he served as Opinion Editor, City Hall reporter, Metro columnist, sports columnist and sports editor through the years. His work has been frequently honored by the California Newspapers Publishers Association, including authoring first-place editorials in 2015 and 2016. Bill and his wife, Karen, are proud parents of two adult sons, and they have two grandsons. You can contact Bill at 559-492-4031 or at Send an Email

Steph Curry Scores 31 Points in the Warriors’ Victory Over the Rockets in Game 1

15 minutes ago

Pope Francis, First Latin American Pontiff, Dies on Easter Monday

2 hours ago

Chargers in Need of Help at Wide Receiver and Tight End in the NFL Draft

24 hours ago

Magic Happens When Kids and Adults Learn to Swim. Tragedy Can Strike if They Don’t.

24 hours ago

Big Fresno Fair Board Will Be Led by an American Sikh for 1st Time

24 hours ago

AI ‘Friend’ for Public School Students Falls Flat

1 day ago

Is a ‘Friend-Apist’ What We Really Want From Therapy?

1 day ago

Yemen’s Houthi Rebels Report US Strikes in the Capital and a Coastal City

2 days ago

Progressive Icon and Ex-US Rep. Barbara Lee Wins Race for Mayor of Oakland

2 days ago

Humanoid Robots Run a Chinese Half-Marathon Alongside Human Competitors

2 days ago

US Bond Funds Suffer Fifth Weekly Outflow on Tariff-Driven Inflation Fears

(Reuters) – U.S. bond funds came under heavy selling pressure in the week to April 16, highlighting concerns that U.S. President Donal...

2 minutes ago

Wall Street street sign
2 minutes ago

US Bond Funds Suffer Fifth Weekly Outflow on Tariff-Driven Inflation Fears

President Donald Trump listens to remarks during a swearing-in ceremony for Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Mehmet Oz in the Oval Office in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 18, 2025. (REUTERS/Nathan Howard/File Photo)
8 minutes ago

Trump Warns of Economic Slowdown Unless Fed Cuts Rates

9 minutes ago

Fresno County Will Sell Naming Rights for Clovis and Reedley Libraries

Golden State Warriors' Stephen Curry (30) scores against Houston Rockets' Tari Eason (17) and Jalen Green (4) during the first half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series in Houston, Sunday, April 20, 2025. (Scott Strazzante/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
15 minutes ago

Steph Curry Scores 31 Points in the Warriors’ Victory Over the Rockets in Game 1

FILE PHOTO: Newly elected Pope Francis appears at the window of his future private apartment to bless the faithful, gathered below in St. Peter's Square, during the Sunday Angelus prayer at the Vatican March 17, 2013. REUTERS/Tony Gentile/File Photo
2 hours ago

Pope Francis, First Latin American Pontiff, Dies on Easter Monday

24 hours ago

Chargers in Need of Help at Wide Receiver and Tight End in the NFL Draft

24 hours ago

Magic Happens When Kids and Adults Learn to Swim. Tragedy Can Strike if They Don’t.

24 hours ago

Big Fresno Fair Board Will Be Led by an American Sikh for 1st Time

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend