The last of the 13 young men trapped in a flooded Chiang Rai cave for the past two weeks are expected to emerge from its confines sometime today, provincial governor Narongsak Osottanakorn said this morning.
The third — and hopefully last — mission to rescue members of the Wild Boars soccer club began at 10:08am this morning, Narongsak told reporters at a noon press conference.
“We’ve prepared for the third rescue operation since dawn. As of 10:08am, the third operation has begun. Nineteen divers went in,” Narongsak said.
“We insist that four boys, one coach, the doctor, and all three SEAL members will be out today,” he said, referencing a group of rescuers who have been staying inside the cave with the team since they were first discovered on July 2.
After Monday’s rescue mission was complete in just nine hours — compared with 11 hours for the first group extracted on Sunday — Narongsak said he expected much the same today.
“The reason that we can pull it off is experience,” he said. “Today we hope that we’ll complete the mission even faster or make the same time as yesterday.”
Asked if the team would make use of the mini-submarine American tech entrepreneur Elon Musk dropped off early this morning, Narongsak simply said it was “not practical” for their mission.
Narongsak also referenced the fact that the four boys rescued on Sunday had at this point been able to see their families, a fact detailed in a morning press conference at Chiang Rai’s Prachanukroh Hospital.
As the press conference took place, rain was pouring down outside, but Narongsak assured reporters that it would have now effect on their mission as water levels in the cave remained as low as they were yesterday.
“It will be a more exhausting mission than yesterday, but the wait will be worth it.”
