Author Topic: 12 soccer players and their coach found in Thailand cave  (Read 647 times)

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Offline wilber

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They make full face masks, mostly used by professional divers but some recreational divers are starting to us them. Anyhoo, this is something for the pros to sort out.
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Offline Omni

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I have been a good swimmer since I was basically out of diapers, and I have sport dived, but the more I hear about what those kids are facing in order to to swim out of there kinda takes me back to my diaper days. (If you get my drift) 

Offline Michael Hardner

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Sedate them, stick em in a bag. 

That's the conservative answer to everything.😂

Actually that would make a great bumper sticker!
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Offline ?Impact

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Apparently the "Sedate them, stick em in a bag." option has been looked at, although it seems not to have had much traction. I have seen some people discuss "package" or "restrain" options similar to Argus although that seems very low down on the list. Like the diving option, the big issue is what if something goes wrong. With diving, at least the boy will have some chance to try and correct it even though he lacks the experience to know what to do. With the package option the chances of discovering the problem before it is too late are very high.

If anyone is really trying to see what is happening, I suggest checking out the European (mostly UK) news sites, etc. They seem to have coverage that is about 10x better than any Canadian or American one.

Many options are being considered, but they all have advantages and disadvantages:

Having the boys dive/swim out is seriously being considered as an early option because they have a very short window of a few days before the next big monsoon rain hits. There is a good chance they will at least attempt it with the stronger and more experienced swimmers within the next 36 hours. The biggest issue here is the short time to prepare, and the large risk if something does go wrong. That risk cannot be overstated, because there are long passages to traverse and it is almost impossible to see in the murky water. The water is lower than it was a few day ago, and more important it is calmer, but that won't last long. While they continue to pump more out, there is no way they will be able to pump it dry before the next rain.

Waiting for the water to subside, and the passages to dry, is the safest option. The problem is that is unlikely to happen until the fall/winter. This seems to be plan B, and they are doing all the prep work like moving in supplies before the passages fill even more and the boys get cut off.

Finding another way into the caves is being explored, but really a shot in the dark.

Drilling is still being considered. The technical problems here are locating the cave as there is little detail in the surveys and if you are off by a few meters then you waste the days it took to drill that attempt, and the fact that infrastructure like roads will first need to be built to carry in the heavy equipment. There has a huge risk that the wet/muddy soil could easily cause a collapse in the caverns, and that could be a disaster.
« Last Edit: July 04, 2018, 09:52:07 am by ?Impact »

Offline Omni

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It sounds from what we see/hear that these boys could well be in that cave for some time to come. A further issue that arises from that possibility is waste management. That cave could become a very unhealthy place.

Offline Goddess

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This is a graphic of the area where they are trapped :
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Offline Omni

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That's going to be one hellish long 2.5 miles to swim through in a tight tunnel in the dark.

Offline ?Impact

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That's going to be one hellish long 2.5 miles to swim through in a tight tunnel in the dark.

At one point the divers have to remove their scuba tanks to squeeze through the tight tunnel. Also note that the water in the tunnel was moving water earlier in the week, although it has calmed down somewhat for the moment; that of course will change dramatically if it rains.

Offline Omni

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I just heard a news update and they had a reporter on site who was saying they are at the moment arranging to pull oxygen supply hoses into the cave via the tunnel as the air quality inside is deteriorating rapidly. Also that monsoon rain is expected in about 24 hours. He says they have come to the conclusion that they may be forced to start the evacuation within that time frame. I'm chewing my finger nails. 
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Offline ?Impact

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I just heard a news update and they had a reporter on site who was saying they are at the moment arranging to pull oxygen supply hoses into the cave via the tunnel as the air quality inside is deteriorating rapidly. Also that monsoon rain is expected in about 24 hours.

Yes, the heavy rains are expected to start in about 24-36 hours. I heard about them putting in an oxygen supply, but it sounded more like a contingency plan. They are also scouring the area looking for other natural fissures and chimneys into the cave system because the boys reported hearing livestock noises and they suspect there is a opening above; perhaps too small to climb but big enough for noises and air to pass. They might however be able to enlarge and clear it out to provide an escape route.

Primary plan is to keep draining water to shorten the length of underwater journey, they doubt they will be able to lower it enough to walk out the entire way before the rains hit.

Two of the boys, and the coach have been evaluated too exhausted to attempt a dive.

They may try to take the strongest out underwater, but it is a long journey of several hours. Good news is the water flow is in the right direction, but it will still be at least 4 hours out and probably much longer because that is the time it takes the experienced divers to traverse. Oxygen tanks, ropes, and other supplies are lining the route to aid this. If/when they attempt it will probably be one at a time with 2-3 experienced divers guiding them.

They are getting all the equipment necessary brought in for all the boys to dive if the situation becomes desperate enough.

Offline ?Impact

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Very sad news out of Thailand this evening. One of the volunteers, a former Thai navy SEAL, 38 year old Samarn Kunan, died in the cave. He was placing air tanks along the escape route and ran out of oxygen and collapsed. They were unable to revive him. The air within the cave system is losing oxygen.
« Last Edit: July 05, 2018, 10:14:38 pm by ?Impact »
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Offline Omni

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I am so sorry to hear that, and I hope the kids don't hear about that until after they are out in the daylight. May that man rest in peace for his efforts.

Offline Omni

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I can't stop fretting over these trapped people as the monsoon rains loom and one of the cave diver experts/rescuers has recently died on his way out of the cave after delivering oxygen to the kids. Ellon Musk has sent a group of engineers there to try and help. I hope they can find some "chimneys" from the surface to provide some air to them. Doesn't look good.

Offline Goddess

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All those parents must just be beside themselves.  :'(
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Offline Omni

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All those parents must just be beside themselves.  :'(

Yes indeed. The ups and downs we hear daily on the news as to potential outcomes that make me worry must be horrendously troubling to those parents.