#Thailand - One more boy out, 3 on the way

Four more boys have reached Chamber 3 in Tham Luang -- past the narrow, treacherous passage near the T-junction that poses the greatest threat to the rescue operation, a source in the operation centre 
said on Monday. 

Another source said that one boy was brought all the way out of the cave where 12 boys and their soccer coach had been stranded for over two weeks, and airlifted to Chiangrai Prachanukroh Hospital, a military source said. 

The first source said the boys arrived at the chamber at 4pm after being rescued by foreign and Navy Seal divers from the ledge - called Nern Nom Sao.- where they had sheltered from floodwaters for more than a week.

They are the second batch to undertake the perilous journey out of Tham Luang cave in Mae Sai district in Chiang Rai. The first four were successfully evacuated and taken to Chiangrai Prachanukroh Hospital in Muang district on Sunday. Divers took about four hours to escort the four from the ledge to the chamber, the source added. Chamber 3 is the operational base for rescuers inside the cave. It is about two kilometres from the entrance. 

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Sixth and seventh footballers emerge from cave, taken to hospital by chopper

Two more boys have emerged from the Tham Luang cave near Chiang Rai, exiting at about 7pm on Tuesday. They received medical examinations at a field hospital erected near the cave.

The young Mu Pa Academy footballers, whose name have not been revealed, were taken by ambulance from the cave in Mae Sai district before boarding a chopper to Chiangrai Prachanukraw hospital in Muang district.

They became the second and the third to come out of the cave on day two of the operation to evacuate the footballers and their assistant coach from the cave, where they were stranded 15 days ago.

On Monday, four of his team members were separately extracted from the cave and are receiving treatment at the hospital.

Source - TheNation

 

Thaiand - Rescue bid tipped over next few days

Leaders of the rescue effort at Tham Luang cave in Chiang Rai are considering whether it will be practical to bring out the 12 trapped young footballers and their coach from the flooded cave over the next few days. 

It would be "favourable" to stage an evacuation before fresh rain and a possible rise in carbon dioxide sets in, according to former Chiang Rai governor Narongsak Osotthanakorn who has been put in charge of the rescue operation. 

 "Now, water in the cave is down to satisfactory levels and the weather is fine. The boys' health has begun to improve and they have now learned the basics of diving," said Mr Narongsak, who is now Phayao governor.

"In the next two or three days, the conditions may be perfect to carry out the rescue plan,'' he told reporters yesterday afternoon. 

 The main concern is now the level of oxygen in the cave, Mr Narongsak said, adding that more clean air has been fed into the cave and more oxygen tanks have been brought in.
The number of rescuers operating in the cave complex will now be kept to a minimum to preserve oxygen and prevent a possible increase in carbon dioxide, Mr Narongsak said.
However, at least four rescuers will be sent in to look after the 12 boys and their coach who are sheltering on the ledge called Nern Nom Sao, he said.
Mr Narongsak added that two more British cave diving experts have arrived in Chiang Rai to support the rescue bid and another two from Britain will come today.

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What an surprise, one can speak English

English-speaking footballer is academic polymath, says teacher

 The video clip of the first encounter between British divers and the 13 missing members of a local football team trapped in Tham Luang cave for days thrilled the nation as they were found safe and alive.

As the conversation between the divers and the boys continued, the clip’s watchers may have been surprised when a boy was able to communicate in English and became the translator for his friends.

 The boy became the talk of the town as many people wondered who he is. People praised him for being fluent in English considering his age and in comparison to his friends who had to ask him to translate for them.

The clip was shared more than four million times across the globe as the boys’ disappearance in the cave and the multinational rescue operations became the headline news for days and continues to do so.

 Japanese seeing the clip expressed surprise that such a young boy knew sufficient English to communicate and they compared him to Japanese boys of the same age.

One person not surprised was his teacher, Piyarat Yodsuwan of Mor 2/3, Ban Wiengpan School. Adul Samorn, 14, can speak four languages, said the teacher: Thai, English, Chinese and Burmese.

As a student of the school’s so-called “Buffer School”, Adul learnt foreign languages from native speakers. He is under the care of Hope Mae Sai Church as his Akha hilltribe family, who live in Myanmar, is very poor.The school has promoted the study of foreign languages because about 80 per cent of the students who graduate from Mor 3 are planning to run a business at the border. Therefore, it is necessary for them to understand foreign languages.

The studies focus on enabling the students to communicate rather than on the grammar, the teacher said.

Piyarat said that Adul is a hardworking student with a grade average of 3.9 out of 4.

He also joins in many activities after classes, such as football, volleyball and biking, and shows musical talents and can play guitar, violin and piano. 

He was also a winner in the science competition at the provincial level and has a good sense of responsibility, as he always submits his homework when he is absent, said his teacher.

Source - TheNation

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Thailand - Diving the top option to evacuate 13 despite risk out of the Chiang Mai cave

Rescuers do not want to delay their exit due to upcoming rains and the possibility of more flooding in cave.

ALL 13 survivors are now familiarising themselves with diving gear as rescue planners concluded yesterday that they will have to dive through floodwaters to get out of the Tham Luang cave, where they have been stranded since June 23. 

“The fittest of the survivors will be the first to come out,” Narongsak Osotanakorn, the head of the rescue operations, said yesterday. “Others will follow.”

The former Chiang Rai governor spoke as the floodwater level inside the cave subsided thanks to the powerful pumps, well-connected tubes, and diversion of the natural water flow around the Tham Luang cave system. 

The easing of the flood situation has raised the prospects of helping the 13 footballers come out of the cave where they have spent 11 days.

“The floodwater level has been dropping by one centimetre per hour. If we can maintain this momentum, it should be safe enough to bring the kids out soon,” Narongsak said. On Tuesday, the US Cave Rescue Commission’s national coordinator Anmar Mirza said that while diving was the quickest option to bring the survivors out, it was also the “most dangerous” option.

But the option of letting the survivors stay inside the cave until the floodwaters completely receded was yesterday ruled out amid the significant risk of impending heavy downpours that could again leave the cave flooded. The 10-kilometre-long cave in Chiang Rai province is normally flooded between July and November every year. On Monday night, experienced cave divers from Britain found the missing football team at a spot about 5km from the cave’s entrance. 

The 13 survivors will stay put at their current location while detailed preparations are being made for their safe evacuation. They have been joined by Royal Thai Navy SEALs and are also supplied with soft food, water, light, medicine, thermal blankets and diving gear. 

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 Learning to dive

The survivors were yesterday taught to wear full-face masks and practice breathing. 

Medics, including Army doctor Colonel Pak Loharachun, have completed health checks for all team members and found them relatively healthy. A video clip released yesterday showed the footballers had minor wounds and were apparently eager to leave the cave. One footballer asked, “Can we go out today?” Pak told the boys to be patient, explaining that despite his diving skills it took him six hours to move from the third chamber of the cave to the current location of the survivors. 

The third chamber of the cave, which is about two kilometres from the entrance, is now operating as the forward command of the rescue operations. Lighting and communication devices have been installed there and also supplied with oxygen tanks, medicine and all other necessary supplies. 

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From the third chamber to the flooded T-junction is a distance of about 800 metres. From that intersection, there is a narrow and completely submerged passage that requires rescue teams to dive to get through. The floodwater level there was nearly five metres as of press time. 

After getting out of this narrow passage, rescue teams have to climb and hike a stretch of 400 metres. This zone is dry. Then, they have to dive for about another 130 metres to reach the so-called Pattaya Beach. Then the team must walk further over the beach before making another 400-metre-long dive to reach the slope where the survivors have gathered. 

All these survivors will have to be taught to swim and dive before being escorted out. 

Even with diving experts by their side, the team will have to dive and swim on their own at some points in the journey out of the cave. 

The two Britons who first located the missing victims – Richard Stanton and John Volanthen – have remained with the rescue team to help with the safe evacuation. The other British expert, Robert Harper, who was in his 70s, had to leave Chiang Rai province yesterday, though, to undergo a medical check-up in his homeland. 

A rescue team from the United States Indo-Pacific Command has also vowed to support the operations at the Tham Luang cave until all 13 survivors are safely brought out.

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Source - TheNation 
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