Rescue teams in Xaisomboun province, Laos found five of seven villagers alive on May 27, 2026 after they were trapped in a flooded cave for more than a week. The survivors were discovered at 4:30 p.m. local time about 984 feet from the entrance, huddled in a muddy chamber. Two people remain missing. The group had entered the cave searching for gold when torrential rain flooded it and blocked the entrance with gravel and dirt.
Cave flooding incident
- ▪Torrential rain flooded the cave in Xaysomboun province, Laos and blocked the entrance with gravel and dirt
- ▪Seven people entered a cave in Xaysomboun province, Laos in search of gold
- ▪The cave in Xaysomboun province is part of an extensive underground network about 70 miles northeast of Vientiane, the capital of Laos
Discovery of trapped miners
- ▪The five survivors told rescuers that they were famished, but not injured or ill
- ▪Rescuers reached five trapped miners at around 4:30 p.m. local time on May 27, 2026
- ▪The five miners were found huddled together in a small, muddy chamber of the cave
- ▪Two people remain missing from the group of seven who entered the cave in Laos
- ▪Rescuers found five people alive who had been trapped in a flooded cave in Laos for a week on May 27, 2026
- ▪The five trapped miners were found about 984 feet (300 meters) from the cave's entrance
Rescue operation challenges
- ▪The rescue effort in Laos has been complicated by dangerous conditions including flooded passages, potentially contaminated air and narrow tunnels
- ▪Metta Tham Rescue is a Thai organization invited by the Lao government to join the rescue effort in Xaysomboun province
- ▪Kengkard Bongkawong is the president of Metta Tham Rescue
- ▪Rescuers cautioned that it would be difficult to extract the five trapped miners from the flooded cave in Laos
- ▪Mikko Paasi said any rescue would involve pumping water out of the cave
Expert diver involvement
- ▪Mikko Paasi and another diver will bring the trapped miners supplies to help them gain strength and prepare for the journey out
- ▪Mikko Paasi has 30 years of experience diving in mines
- ▪Mikko Paasi and Norrased Palasing are the two rescue divers who filmed video of the trapped miners in the Laos cave
Narrow tunnel conditions
- ▪The narrow tunnels in the Laos cave make it very hard, difficult and dangerous because rescuers cannot turn around
- ▪The tunnels in the Laos cave are long with only a few chambers large enough to stand up in
- ▪Mikko Paasi said he had never seen such narrow tunnels in his 30 years of diving in mines
Perspective of Finnish cave diver Mikko Paasi
- ▪Mikko Paasi said he had never seen such narrow tunnels in his 30 years of diving in mines
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