Thailand’s Navy SEALs have released footage of the gripping moment when two divers from the UK made first contact with 12 youth soccer players and their coach, the subjects of a 10-day search and rescue mission that had held Thailand the world captivated.
The 5-minute clip, captured by one of the divers in POV style, shows the 13 sitting on a ledge above the floodwater. A few of them can be heard speaking in English to the divers.
“Thank you!” say a few children.
“How many of you?” the diver asks.
“Thirteen!” one of them replies.
“Thirteen! Brilliant,” the rescuer says, assuring them that, “Many people are coming. We’re the first.”
The video was the first the world has seen of the boys, after 10 days of round-the-clock rescue efforts that have involved experts from several countries. The soccer team was discovered 400 meters beyond Pattaya Beach, the major chamber deepest within the cave.
“What day [is it]?” one of boys asks.
“Monday. One week. You’ve been here 10 days. You’re very strong,” the diver responds.
“We’re very hungry,” one of them said.
Another says in Thai, “Tell them we’re hungry!”
The rescuer then explained that help is on the way.
“I am very happy. Thank you so much!” one of the boys says in English, while a few others is heard thanking the rescuers in Thai: “Khob khun krub.”
“We’re happy too,” the diver says.
Chiang Rai Governor Narongsak Osatanakorn broke the news of the team’s discovery late last night, saying the rescue team would now need to strategize how to get them immediate aid and ultimately extract them from the cave.
“We found all 13 safe… we will take care of them until they can move,” Narongsak said in comments broadcast nationwide.
“We will bring food to them and a doctor who can dive. I am not sure they can eat as they have not eaten for a while.”
The massive international rescue effort had for days been hampered by heavy rains that flooded the cave, blocking access to chambers where it was hoped the group would be found alive.
The condition of the group was not immediately clear after days underground.
Thai Navy SEAL divers were joined during the week by three British cave divers and a team of American military personnel from the US Pacific Command, including para-rescue and survival specialists.
The boys, aged 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old soccer coach went into the cave on June 23 after a training session and became stranded when heavy rains cut them off from the entrance.
At 10 kilometres long, Luang Cave is one of Thailand’s longest caves and one of the toughest to navigate, with snaking chambers and narrow passageways.
Additional reporting by AFP
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