Rescue Divers Free First Miner From Flooded Laos Cave After More Than A Week

Rescue divers in Laos began removing miners trapped in a flooded cave for more than a week, and video shared on social media late Friday local time showed a rescued man being propped up as he emerged from a narrow crevice before medical assistance.

“One person has been safely brought out of a flooded cave in Laos, one of the rescuers says”

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The BBC said the first of five men found alive after spending more than a week trapped inside a flooded cave in Laos was freed on Wednesday, when rescue divers found them huddled together 300m (984ft) from the cave mouth.

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The Associated Press reported that rescuers were pumping water out of the flooded cave's passages on Friday but an overnight rainstorm complicated their work, leaving two men still missing after five were located.

ABC News said cave explorer Adam Weaver breaks down the Laos cave rescue and the dangers of cave exploration, with the rescue unfolding in Laos as rescuers worked through the flooded passages.

Thai rescue team member Kengkard Bonggawong said on social media that "One person has got out of the cave safely," and added, "We will assess the other four and we will hunt for the other two tomorrow."

The BBC also quoted the Thai rescue group’s update: "The first victim has been successfully rescued out of the cave."

ABC News

In a video interview, Gary Mitchell, press officer for the South & Mid Wales Cave Rescue Team, said a rescue plan depends on "the length of the dives involved, the restrictions and the sheer size of the passages that they are in, and the support that's available," and he warned that rescuers must weigh risks of guiding survivors without diving skills against waiting for water levels to recede.

Mikko Paasi, a Finnish diver involved in the rescue, told the CBS News team that the scuba idea was "the last option," because it would put both the miners and the rescue divers at "quite high risk."

Rescue teams withdrew for the day after the first extraction, and the Channel 3000 update said the remaining four survivors were not yet ready to be evacuated, with the operation expected to resume at 9 a.m. Saturday local time.

“Cave explorer Adam Weaver breaks down the Laos cave rescue Cave explorer Adam Weaver breaks down the Laos cave rescue and the dangers of cave exploration”

ABC News

NBC News reported that Kengkard Bongkawong confirmed four remained inside and "are awaiting further assessment," while CBS News said seven artisanal gold miners had been in the cave for nine days with five located and two still missing.

The BBC said thunderstorms had been predicted for Friday evening along with rain in 60 per cent of the region, and it described the rescue as a race against time in the remote mountain area of central Xaysomboun province.

The Age quoted a member of the search and rescue team saying, "We will continue until sunrise," as it described the men as seven fossickers from three small villages in Xaisomboun province and noted that additional expert divers were brought in from overseas, including Australia’s Josh Richards.