Rescue operations have begun for the 12 boys and their coach trapped at the Thailand cave for more than two weeks.
On Sunday, after at least eight hours since a team of divers started rescue efforts, at least four boys have emerged from the cave, as reported by multiple news outlets. The Thai Navy SEAL official Facebook page also confirmed four players were evacuated.
In addition, two ambulances were seen leaving the site with one boy believed to be in each.
A team of 13 international cave diving experts and five Thai Navy SEALs entered the cave with the mission of accompanying each boy one by one through the flooded tunnels, that claimed the life of a former Thai Navy SEAL diver on Friday.
“Two kids are out. They are currently at the field hospital near the cave,” Tossathep Boonthong, chief of Chiang Rai’s health department and part of the rescue team, told Reuters. “We are giving them a physical examination. They have not been moved to Chiang Rai hospital yet.”
Rescue mission chief and Chiang Rai governor Narongsak Osotanakorn called the operation “D-Day” as he gave a press conference on Sunday.
“Today is D-Day. We are 100% ready. There’s a storm coming and if we wait for the rains, conditions won’t be as perfect as they are now,” Osottanakorn told reporters, according to TIME.
Osotanakorn also explained that the boys and their coach will be evacuated using a common cave exploration method called “buddy diving,” chaperoned by two experts or “buddies.”
With the entire round trip estimated to take roughly 11 hours to complete for each boy, officials predict the rescue efforts could take two to three days before the entire team is out of the cave.
Four rescued from trapped Thai soccer team
FOUR BOYS RESCUED: Four members of the Thai soccer team trapped in a flooded cave have been saved. The operation isn't getting any easier as divers race against time, weather conditions https://cbsn.ws/2NBwWx0
Publiée par CBS Los Angeles sur Dimanche 8 juillet 2018
