In the wee hours this morning, Thai Navy SEALs arrived at Luang Khun Nam Nang Non Cave in Chiang Rai province, where 12 youth soccer players and their coach are believed to be trapped since Saturday afternoon, following a flood caused by a heavy rainstorm.
It’s been nearly two days since a park officer spotted bicycles and a motorbike of the group parked outside the cave’s entrance. The boys, ages 11-16, and their coach were seen entering the remote, yet popular, tourist attraction after their weekly training session, reported Khaosod.
Rear Admiral Apagorn Yukonggeow said rescuers have found the boys’ shoes and markings along the walls believed made by the group as deep as three kilometers from the entrance, but the cave’s narrow pathways and the cold floodwater have complicated the task.
As of 11:35am, Rungrot Kongpiban, a Thai reporter on the site, posted an update to his Facebook account, saying the SEALS had dived into the five-meter-deep water to reach one of the tunnels to the cave, but had not yet found any missing players.
The SEALs are coming up with a new plan to enter the main chamber of the cave, which also happens to be the deepest part of the cave and where they believe the lost soccer team may have taken refuge.
This will be a challenge as the chamber lies some seven kilometers from the entrance and at least some of that journey will be underwater.
Coconuts will keep you posted on any updates.
