Free at last. The first four boys have been extracted from Luang Cave — two weeks after becoming trapped by flood waters along with eight teammates and their young coach, officials have confirmed.
“7:35pm — three Wild Boars are out of the cave,” the Thai Nany SEALS confirmed on their official Facebook this evening, referencing the name of the youth soccer team. Minutes later, they followed with: “19:47pm – The 4th Wild Boar came out.”
While the timeline has not been confirmed, local media reported that the first two boys walked out of the cave at about 5:50pm, and at 7:30pm, reporters stationed at Prachanukroh Hospital saw two ambulances arrived. This follows local volunteers at the cavesite telling Coconuts they had seen the ambulances depart.
Based on a statement given by Defence Ministry spokesman Lieutenant-General Kongcheep Tantrawanit, at least one more boy is expected to come out of the cave soon.
“Two are out of the cave. Two more are likely to follow shortly,” Kongcheep told AFP.
After a dangerous 16-day rescue mission that saw one experienced diver die only Friday, officials today decided to launch the operation as the water level inside the cave had receded to its lowest point since the start.
Thirteen international divers and five Thai Navy SEAL members began the rescue operation at 10am.
This story will be updated with new information soon.
