Thai Navy SEAL video reveals rescue method

In the days leading up to the eventual evacuation of the Mu Pa team members from Tham Luang caves we were told that the teenagers were being taught to swim and dive in preparation for their arduous trek out of the cave, much of it underwater. This was reported by The Thaiger as well.

Following the release of a Thai Navy SEAL video it appears that the plans may have changed along the way and that some at least, if not all, were moved along in stretches, sedated to a greater or lesser extent.

A diver who spoke to The Thaiger on condition of anonymity, says that the plan changed in the days before the evacuation as medics and divers working with the team evolved the plan to meet the 1) urgency and 2) best outcome for the team members.

Commander Chaiyananta Peeranarong, told AFP yesterday that the boys were “sleeping or partially-conscious as they were passed from diver to diver through the cave.”

In the Thai Navy SEAL video some of the young rescuees can clearly be seen conscious as they were taken out on rescue stretchers. The video is also an indication of the many, many brave and skilled people inside the caves working as part of a highly co-ordinated rescue.

GRAPHIC: NDTV.com

According to our informant, there were doctors waiting along the route, sometimes as close as 200 metres apart where possible, as ‘triage’ stage where the progress of the boy’s health could be checked along the way. The risk of the boys panicking during extended periods of the dives through the muddy cave waters was a major consideration as the plans evolved.

A BBC report, citing ‘sources in the rescue operation’ said…

They were then strapped to one of two rescue divers tasked with shepherding each boy through the underwater parts of the system, and bundled into stretchers to be carried through the dry parts.

Divers didn’t divulge details of the risky rescue mission because they were 100% focussed on making the plan work as well as the difficulty of communicating what they were doing to the media, according to our source.

There will be a media briefing on the full rescue at some stage where the full details will be revealed.

Watch the full Navy SEAL rescue video HERE.