Five male residents who had been trapped for nearly 10 days in a cave in Laos have all been rescued.
According to AFP and other sources on Tuesday (local time), one of the five survivors emerged from a cave in the Long Cheng area of Xaisomboun Province in central Laos the previous day, and the remaining four were all safely rescued on the same day.
Thai rescue divers said via Facebook on Tuesday afternoon that "rescue workers have rescued an additional four people who were trapped," adding that "a total of five people have been rescued so far, while two remain missing."
After rescuers used pumps and other equipment to drain water from inside the cave, lowering the water level sufficiently, the four survivors emerged together with divers who had entered to deliver food and water. Footage filmed by volunteers showed rescue workers with flashlights strapped to their heads leading the four mud-covered individuals out of the cave.
The group entered the cave around the 20th. Seven residents, who normally made their living by gathering food in nearby mountains, found unusually colored rocks and sand inside the cave and went in to check whether gold was present, only to be stranded when heavy rains submerged the exit.
Rescue divers found five of them alive on the 27th at a point about 300 meters from the cave entrance. Although their physical condition had deteriorated significantly due to dehydration and lack of food, their overall health was largely sound.
Muet, who was rescued the previous day, said the two still missing had ventured about 500 meters deeper into the cave than he had.
