Rescue teams in Laos are trying to reach seven people who have been trapped for five days in a flooded cave in the north of the country. The group entered the site on Wednesday (20), in a remote region of the city of Long Gian, and ended up isolated after a sudden flood blocked the exit.
According to local authorities and state media, the missing persons had accessed the cave in search of gold when heavy rains hit the region and rapidly raised the water level.
The teams believe that the group is sheltering more than 100 meters from the cave’s main entrance. Up to now, rescuers have not been able to establish direct contact with the missing people.
The operation gained international reinforcement in recent days. Specialized divers from Thailand began participating in the searches, including members who were involved in the rescue of the young soccer players trapped in a Thai cave in 2018.
Images released by the Thai underwater rescue group show flooded corridors, low visibility and extremely narrow areas inside the cave. The videos also reveal the difficulty in transporting equipment amid the current and the continual advance of water.
According to accounts from on-site teams, the main obstacle remains the heavy rain, which keeps the water level elevated and reduces the chances of rapid access to the point where the group may be.
Residents of the region and local authorities even used pumps to try to remove part of the accumulated water, but the volume of rainfall prevented significant progress in the operation.
As of Monday (25), there was no official confirmation about the health status of the seven people trapped in the cave.
