Dissecting 4 rescue plans for the Thai soccer team trapped in the cave

Twelve boys and their soccer coach remain trapped in a cave in Thailand after heavy rains blocked the entrance on June 23. Rescuers are pumping water out of the cave in an attempt to save them. Photo: Getty

Twelve Thai boys and their youth soccer coach were found by British divers trapped in a cave 800 meters underground on July 2, 9 days after they went missing. The whole world erupted in joy.

But to this day, the boys are still trapped in the Tham Luang cave system in northern Thailand. Several kilometers of floodwater separates them from the entrance. Although the 13 “main characters” are currently in a safe place above the water level, it is worth noting that this weekend will continue to rain, and because Thailand is entering the rainy season, this cave system could be flooded for up to 4 months.

The rescue mission to retrieve the boys and their coach is a unique international operation involving hundreds of cave and rescue experts and military personnel from several other countries, including the United States, China, the United Kingdom, Australia, and more. They are helping to bring food and medical aid to the boys' shelter, and are advising the Royal Thai Navy on the best way to rescue the team.

But the situation is becoming more urgent. Oxygen levels in the cave are dropping dangerously low. And the rescue team suffered its first loss on July 6, when volunteer Saman Gunan, 38, lost consciousness while carrying an oxygen tank into the cave and ran out of air underwater, later dying.

According to several news channels, there are four rescue options being considered: keeping them in the cave until the water recedes, pumping out the water so they can walk out through the previous entrance, teaching the children how to dive so they can endure the five-hour underwater journey out, or drilling through the cave to pull them out.

The fate of these boys remains deeply uncertain and rescuers will soon have to make crucial, difficult decisions about how best to keep them safe.

How did the boys get into the cave?

On Saturday, June 23, the Wild Boars soccer team, consisting of 12 boys between the ages of 11 and 16, finished their weekly soccer practice and went exploring in a cave with their coach. According to the Wall Street Journal, they had been inside the cave before; this time, they wanted to go deeper so they could carve their names into the cave walls.

But after entering the cave, it started to rain heavily and the water rose, trapping them inside.

As the New York Times reporter reported, at first, the governor of Chiang Rai province, where the cave is located, thought a rescue was “impossible.”

But the effort quickly became an international one. The US sent 30 people, including 17 Air Force members. Rescuers from Australia, Japan, China, Myanmar and Laos also joined the search. The British Cave Rescue Council led the cave expedition that eventually found the victims.

2 civilian divers from the UK“A breakthrough was finally made when they broke through rocks and widened the passage, which was too narrow to pass through while wearing oxygen tanks. Once they had created a wide enough passage, they were able to reach the suspected hiding place of the team, more than 3 miles from the cave entrance. Volanthen and Rick Stanton, both British divers, led the team on the night of 2 July, laying ropes that the divers could use to cross muddy or swirling waters.”

The Times

When found, the children and their missing coach were huddled together on a rock floating on the water, smiling despite their emaciated bodies.

The footage, posted on the Thai Navy SEAL Facebook page, has been viewed 23 million times. Although the audio is not clear, one of the rescuers can be heard telling the children: “You’ve been here for 10 days. 10 days. You’re strong, very strong.”

The story has created a chorus of joy around the world. People everywhere have posted statuses expressing their excitement at the news of the rescue operation.

How will rescuers get the team out?

Relatives share pictures of the boys after 12 boys and their soccer coach were found alive and safe. Photo: Getty

The excitement was short-lived, as the boys' safety remained uncertain and rescuers were calculating the best way to get those trapped out.

The ideal solution – and the one rescuers are aiming for – is to pump the water out of the cave so the boys and their coach can walk out easily the way they came in. In the days since the team was located, the Thai military has used hundreds of industrial pumps to lower the water level by 40%. So far this week, the weather has been relatively dry. But now it’s a race against the environment, with more heavy rain forecast for the weekend.

The second option would be to drill into the cave and pull the boys out. But this would require new roads to facilitate drilling, as well as better maps and time to work out exactly where and how to reach the boys. This, according to the BBC, seems unlikely.

If water levels continue to rise, the boys and their coach may have to swim and dive more than 4 kilometers to the cave entrance, with the help of guide divers. The New York Times spoke to an experienced cave diver who believes that, even though none of the boys can swim, this method could still be effective. “How to get them out is a logistical problem because they have never dived before,” he said. “They will have to learn very quickly.”

Meanwhile, the Guardian reports that the team has begun diving lessons, but are still too weak to make the nearly 4km journey. It currently takes professional divers up to 5 hours to make the journey, due to currents, poor visibility, and narrow, muddy roads.

So what about the fourth option? Simply wait for the water to recede until they can walk out. Since the rainy season ends around October, this could mean another four months of waiting. Thai Navy Captain Anand Surawan said they have moved four months’ worth of food into the cave, with the boys’ health and safety being their top priority.

What happens until the team is rescued?

Rescue operations were difficult due to heavy rains that flooded the cave entrance. Photo: Getty

Rescue efforts are currently being led by the Royal Thai Navy.

The navy, as well as a Special Response Team from Australia, have brought in food, water, medicine and diving equipment. They are also working to get fiber optic cables in so the boys can talk to their families, whose initial excitement is now turning to anxiety.

Football superstars are also showing their support, with Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima and Christian Fuchs sending messages to the team. FIFA has also invited the boys to Russia to watch the World Cup final in the hope that the team will be rescued in the coming days and their health conditions will be guaranteed.

But the cave’s dwindling oxygen is now a serious health concern. As Dinko Novosel, president of the European Cave Rescue Association, told the Times, with current oxygen levels, “you can survive, but you can’t walk or do anything. It’s like being on top of a mountain without oxygen.”