In a major development, four more gold miners have been rescued from a flooded cave in Laos, bringing the total number of survivors to five. Seven villagers entered the cave on May 20 to search for gold and were trapped by flash floods. Rescue Volunteer for People, a Laos-based organization, said on Facebook that the water level inside the cave had receded enough for the four miners to leave with divers.
The rescue operation was fraught with danger. According to lead rescuer Mikko Paasi, the divers essentially "sandwiched" the miners between them to guide them through the partially submerged cave, describing the situation as a "trust-me dive." Visibility inside the cave is limited due to the cramped conditions and murky water, and the cave system is filled with dead ends and knife-sharp rocks. Paasi, who was involved in the 2018 rescue of a youth soccer team from a flooded cave in Thailand, said the operation was risky because the fear of suffocation is the primary cause of panic, and when people panic, they typically claw at their rescuers, which could be fatal or cause a blockage.
Photos and videos shared on social media show the rescued miners wearing oxygen masks and wrapped in foil blankets as they emerged from the cave. Families were seen tearfully embracing the men as they reached safety. Another video posted by Thai rescue worker Ariya Rommai showed the rescued men wrapped in foil and lying on stretchers as they received medical treatment. The rescued miners are reported to be "quite weak" after days trapped in the cave.
Rescue Volunteer for People said it would continue to search for the two missing miners. However, Paasi had previously said that rescuers were no longer looking for them because they are believed to either no longer be alive or trapped in spaces too small for the divers to enter. The rescue team has asked the Laos government for immunity from charges in case someone dies during the rescue mission. The timeline to extract the four remaining miners was still being worked out, according to Paasi. He said new rescue personnel are on scene, as well extra equipment.
In a major development, four more gold miners have been rescued from a flooded cave in Laos, bringing the total number of survivors to five. The group of seven miners had entered the cave ten days ago to search for gold, but were trapped by flash floods. Rescue Volunteer for People, a Laos-based organization, said on Facebook that the water level inside the cave had receded enough for the four miners to leave with divers. This comes after the first man was rescued in a risky operation on Friday, following efforts to pump water out of the cave system that had been initially unsuccessful.
The rescue operation was fraught with danger. According to lead rescuer Mikko Paasi, the divers essentially "sandwiched" the miners between them to guide them through the partially submerged cave, describing the situation as a "trust-me dive." The round trip to where the group is trapped takes a trained team of divers about five hours. Visibility inside the cave is limited due to the cramped conditions and murky water, and the cave system is filled with dead ends and knife-sharp rocks. Paasi, who was involved in the 2018 rescue of a youth soccer team from a flooded cave in Thailand, said the operation was risky because the fear of suffocation is the primary cause of panic, and when people panic, they typically claw at their rescuers, which could be fatal or cause a blockage.
Photos and videos shared on social media show the rescued miners wearing oxygen masks and wrapped in foil blankets, being tearfully embraced by their families. Thai rescuer Adisak Wongsoraya posted video on Facebook showing families tearfully embracing the rescued men as they emerged from the cave. Another video posted by Thai rescue worker Ariya Rommai showed the rescued men wrapped in foil and lying on stretchers as they received medical treatment. The rescued miners are reported to be "quite weak" after days trapped in the cave.
Rescue Volunteer for People said it would continue to search for the two missing miners. However, Paasi had previously said that rescuers were no longer looking for them because they are believed to either no longer be alive or trapped in spaces too small for the divers to enter. The rescue team has asked the Laos government for immunity from charges in case someone dies during the rescue mission. The timeline to extract the remaining two miners is still being worked out, according to Paasi. He said new rescue personnel are on scene, as well extra equipment.
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