Children trapped in Thailand: the difficulties and risks of the rescue operation

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EPA

"This is going to be an extremely difficult task."

Here's how former British paramedic Geoff Crossley defined the rescue operation of the 12 children and their coach trapped in a cave in Thailand two weeks ago.

The risky mission began this Sunday.

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The group is stuck in a culminating point in Tham Luang cave, but with the water rising around him, the agents decided that he could not wait anymore.

The tour contains parts in which the children must dive and others

According to the government, it would take until four days to withdraw the entire group

It took 11 hours for professional first aiders to complete each round trip where is the group: six hours in the first leg and five in the round

The rescue plan

The rescue team consists of 5 Thai divers and 13 foreigners .

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The government of Thailand clarified that children will receive oxygen tanks and full face masks

Two divers will accompany each child they will dive together guided by a rope deployed by the rescuers

The high level skills of divers "and that children have" some diving skills, a strong mind and do not panic. "

Keeping the children calm during the rescue will be essential," said Crossley.

The danger they faced was clear when this week a diver, a former member of the Thai Navy's elite corps, died after taking provisions and running out of the cave

• diver died in the rescue operations of children trapped in a cave in Thailand

the complicated cruise

the first part of the trip out, by narrow and flooded passages is the most complicated, according to BBC correspondent Jonathan Head, of Enclave.

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  Children have been trained in diving in recent days.

  At this point, "the visibility of is one of the worst problems of cave diving," said Crossley in an interview with BBC Radio 5.

  "If you can not see much more than your face … it makes it very difficult because there can be stones getting stuck in the equipment, "he explains

  . very narrow where they will be released oxygen tanks and rescuers will guide the children.

  After that, they will move on to the cave that served as the base for the divers' operations.

  They will rest there, before going to the last stage, in which they will be able to walk more easily towards the entrance.

  Once out they will go immediately to the hospital in Chiang Rai City.

  The dangers for children

  In addition to complicated travel, hypothermia is also a risk.

  The water in the cave is very cold and the children will be submerged, at least partially, in the many hours it will take them out.

  Another danger is infection . They can deal with all kinds of diseases, which could be carried by bats or dirty water.

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  Reuters

  Why now?

  Initially, the possibility that the group could remain in the cave until the end of the rainy season, about four months

  had also been explored.

  But in the middle of the rainy season, it is clear that the floods that initially trapped the children will only worsen in the coming days.

  Rescue teams desperately fetching water from the cave, working literally 24 hours

  In recent days they have managed to drain about 128 million liters and the chief of The rescue operation, Narongsak Osottanakorn, said Sunday that water levels in the Interiors were at their lowest level in recent days.

  "There is no other day when we are more prepared than today," Narongsak said. "Otherwise, we will lose the opportunity ."

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  EPA

  Medical staff, family members, rescue teams, and journalists are some of the people who have established a base in the vicinity of the cave in recent days.

  There is also a army of volunteers They came to help in any way possible: either by cooking for those who were there, or by cleaning the uniforms of the rescuers.

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