Five of the seven villagers who became trapped in a Laos cave for over a week have been found alive, with two still missing.
On May 19, Laotian villagers entered a cave in the Xaisomboun province, but heavy rain triggered a flash flood that blocked the exit.
One person managed to escape the cave before it was completely flooded and quickly raised the alarm with authorities.
According to ABC News, Thai and Laotian teams — which included divers and members who helped free a young Thai football team from a flooded cave in 2018 — joined rescue efforts on Sunday, and reported rapid progress in their search for the missing group.
On Wednesday, rescue teams from Laos and Thailand confirmed that five of the seven people have been found alive, with two more people still missing.
“The second that all 5 people were found by Prada Nam team,” rescuer Chakkrit Tangtang wrote in a Facebook video alongside the amazing discovery.
Other videos shared on social media show fellow rescuers inside and outside of the cave, cheering and jumping for joy following the remarkable news.
According to the Associated Press, there has been no official confirmation on why the villagers went into the cave despite previous reports claiming the group were looking for gold deposits.
Bounkham Luanglat, the president of a Laotian volunteer rescue association, also shared that villagers often visited the cave to mine for gold, despite multiple warnings from authorities over safety concerns.
The status of the two missing people is currently unknown.
Image source: Facebook / จักรกฤษณ์ แต่งตั้ง
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