Thai cave rescue: How the boys had been stored

The Thai cave complex the place 12 boys and their football show become trapped is a snaking device of caverns and crevices which posed a range of problems for rescuers.

Graphic showing cave network and rescue route Presentational white space

A Few stretches of the Tham Luang cave are greater than 10m (33ft) top, whilst others are a decent squeeze via water-stuffed passages.

The death of an skilled former Thai military diver, who was once a part of a crew seeking to provide the lads’ cave with oxygen tanks, emphasized the dangers of the project.

The group of boys and their tutor have been exploring the caves while a sudden hurricane caused the passageways to flood, trapping them inside of. they had spent 9 days within the cave with little meals or light after they had been came upon on Monday 2 July.

Symbol copyright AFP/Royal Thai Army

Rescuers to begin with wanted to keep the crowd equipped underground until the end of the wet season – which would have taken months.

British rescuer John Volanthen, one among those who first found out the boys, said divers have been able to observe rescue ways with Thai boys from a local swimming club in a pool.

“We strapped a cylinder to the front of the child they usually had a whole-face maskā€¦ and essentially we had a handle at the back of the child,” he mentioned

The divers have been then able to manoeuvre the men face down along the passageways.

“should you desire a picture, it was probably extra like a shopping bag that typically you may draw close for your chest if the passage was slim and deep. If the passage was low and huge you can dangle them out to the side and necessarily manoeuvre them round any obstacles that had been in the manner,” he stated.

the boys have been clipped to the divers for safety in case they lost sight of them in the murky water.

The diving choice used to be considered extremely bad via a few, but dive professionals said the concern was once to get the lads out sooner than the rains brought extra flooding and debris into the cave device.

About FORTY% of the men’ journey through the water involved diving and in different parts the water was once up to the rescuers’ chests, Thai Navy SEAL commander Rear Admiral Apakorn Yuukongkaew informed reporters.

After the flooded phase, when they reached the divers’ running base the cave, the lads were bundled into stretchers and carried or winched along ropes, in step with footage released through the Thai Navy Seals.

Symbol copyright AFP/Royal Thai Army

Every journey again to the entrance took a couple of hours.

The rescue project began on 8 July, with divers entering the cave at 10:00 native time (03:00 GMT). The Primary boy emerged at 17:40 and by means of 19:FORTY SEVEN, 3 more had followed.

The challenge used to be paused overnight for air tanks to get replaced alongside the path however resumed once more on Monday and Tuesday till the rest boys and their instruct were introduced out and transferred to sanatorium.

Waiting and pumping

there was a round-the-clock pumping operation to check out to clear the caves.

But as rapid as the water used to be being pumped out, more used to be flowing in, fed by sinkholes and streams in the hills above, and the risks from the approaching monsoon rains was once prime.

Mr Narongsak stated the mission have been “a race against the water”.

Image copyright Getty Pictures

Drilling down

The authorities did try to drill holes in the cave partitions to help drain some of the flood water – even if the thick rock hampered efforts.

there have been additionally ideas that drilling might be in a different way to get to the boys and raise them out.

But to even start the method, new roads might were had to be constructed up above the caves to house the heavy drilling apparatus needed to break during the rock.

Symbol copyright EPA Image caption Government have tried to drill holes to let loose flood waters

an in depth survey of the realm might also have needed to be performed – another way there would be little likelihood of digging a hollow in the proper position to reach the lads and their train. Drilling may also destabilise rocks above the children or block passages and build up flooding.

What had been the hazards down there?

the boys, elderly among 11 and 17, and their 25-12 months-antique show have been huddled on a small rock ledge. the surroundings was wet, so they’d to keep warm and dry or possibility hypothermia.

there were considerations about the stage of oxygen in the air within the house where the boys were trapped. Officers stated at one point that the level of oxygen within the air had fallen to fifteen%. THE USUAL level is 21%.

Rescuers transferred about 100 oxygen tanks to the cave to assist toughen the air provide.

Thai diver PO Saman had been helping switch the tanks whilst he were given into problems at the long ago and did not have sufficient air himself. He died after losing awareness in one in all the passageways and his colleagues couldn’t revive him.

Image caption A camp of rescuers, volunteers, family and the press built up outside the cave front Nine days of hope – images from the quest Thailand rejoices as boys discovered The Brits who found the crowd alive

How did they take care of the psychological pressure?

the men can have had torches or lights on cell phones, however that they had probably been sitting in the dark for hours.

So rescue groups took lighting into the chamber and kept the group company.

Divers also introduced letters from the boy’s folks to assist them take care of the stress.

Symbol copyright Fb/ekatol Symbol caption A Facebook photo presentations the educate with some of the young footballers

“They Are mentally strong that’s if truth be told pretty excellent,” Ben Reymenants, a Belgian diver helping with the rescue operation, told AFP news agency.

“Fortuitously the coach had the sanity of mind to keep them all together, huddled together to conserve their energy, that really stored them.”

, , , ,

Leave a Reply