Five Gold Miners Found Alive After Week Trapped in Flooded Laos Cave; Search for Two Others Continues

The Discovery

Five of the seven Lao nationals trapped in a cave in Xaisomboun province were found alive on Wednesday afternoon, bringing a moment of relief to a grueling week-long rescue operation. Thai rescue team head Kengkard Bongkawong confirmed the discovery at 4:30 p.m. local time. Video posted by rescuer Chakrakrit Taengtung showed the survivors in good spirits, raising their arms and smiling despite their ordeal.

As of 4:30 p.m., we found five people. We will continue to search for the other two.

The men were located on a rocky ledge surrounded by water in a dark chamber, approximately 300 meters from the cave entrance. They were described as hungry and exhausted but in stable condition. One survivor told a rescuer, "I feel fine, but I am terribly hungry," while others murmured they were weak and without strength.

The Ordeal

The group had entered the abandoned gold mine in the Long Chaeng area on either May 19 or 20 to search for gold. Heavy rains triggered flash flooding and a landslide that blocked the exit, leaving them stranded without communication. For a week, no signs of life had been detected until Wednesday's breakthrough.

The Rescue Operation

More than 100 people have been involved in the high-risk operation, including 15 expert divers and specialists. Lao rescue teams were joined on Sunday by Thai volunteers, among them divers who participated in the globally watched 2018 Tham Luang cave rescue in Thailand. Finnish diver Mikko Paasi, also a veteran of that operation, noted that the Laos mine presents even greater difficulties, with passages as narrow as 60 centimeters requiring rescuers to crawl and dive through mud.

Here we are not just talking about a passage blocked by water. There has also been a collapse. It is possible that there are injuries, which increases the risk that they will not get out unscathed.

Rescuers have been battling rising water levels from ongoing rains, though pumping has reduced water in some areas and no rain has fallen in the last two days. The extraction remains complex due to the flooded, collapsed terrain.

The Missing Two

While five survivors have been located, two men remain unaccounted for. Search efforts continue as night fell on Wednesday, with rescuers working to navigate the treacherous conditions. It is not yet known whether the five found have been brought to the surface.

Echoes of Tham Luang

The operation draws inevitable comparisons to the 2018 rescue of 12 boys and their football coach from Tham Luang cave in Thailand, an 18-day ordeal that captivated the world. That mission involved British and other foreign divers, U.S. military personnel, and international support. One diver died during the operation and another later from related complications. The current rescue in Laos, while smaller in scale, shares the same life-or-death stakes and technical challenges.