Five of Seven Trapped in Laos Cave for Week Found Alive, Search Continues

Adnkronos International, Rome

(TNS)

Five of the seven villagers trapped in a flooded cave in Laos have been found alive by rescuers, in an operation reminiscent of the dramatic rescue of the youth football team in Thailand in 2018. The five men were located today by specialized divers, but remain trapped in an underground cavity in the central Laotian province of Xaisomboun. Meanwhile, the search for the other two missing persons continues.

“Five people have been found safe and sound. The search continues for the other two,” Thai diver Kengkad Bongkawong wrote on Facebook. The Laotian group 'Rescue Volunteer for People' also confirmed that the five survivors are alive and in stable condition.

Before the discovery, rescuers had spoken of a “race against time” to reach the group, trapped for a week in the cave. “We are racing against time, as today is the seventh day and the path is full of pitfalls,” said Finnish diver Mikko Paasi, who was also involved in the Tham Luang cave rescue in 2018.

Paasi, who is also participating in the current mission, then expressed relief at the discovery of the five men: “So far the task has been anything but easy and everyone has done an extraordinary job.” However, he clarified that it is only “a brief moment of relief,” because the survivors still need to be evacuated. “They are all healthy and in good spirits, but the extraction will be very complicated,” he explained.

According to rescuers, the five men appear very weak and hungry, but reportedly have no serious illnesses or injuries. The divers will now return to the cavity to deliver new food supplies and help them regain their strength before exiting.

The seven men, all male, had entered the cave on May 20 in search of gold in what Paasi called an “abandoned gold mine,” but heavy rains caused a sudden flood that blocked the exit. Local authorities and villagers worked for days to pump water out of the cave.

The rescue operations are proving particularly difficult. To reach the missing, rescuers had to cross a tunnel approximately 340 meters long, partly flooded and completely dark. Some passages are reportedly only 60 centimeters wide, so much so that one of the divers was forced to remove part of his equipment to continue.

The cave system, located in a remote area about 125 kilometers from the capital Vientiane, extends deep underground with several levels and narrow passages. “You have to travel hundreds of meters through continuous obstacles, floods, collapse hazards, and a high risk of air pollution,” Paasi had explained before the discovery.

Over 100 people are participating in the operation, including 15 experienced divers and specialists who took part in the famous rescue in Thailand in 2018.

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