A specialized rescue team racing against time in Laos is closing in on seven people who have been trapped deep inside a cave for nearly a week. After successfully clearing through 15 meters (16 yards) of dense debris and mud in a single day, the operation's leader expressed immense confidence that a breakthrough is imminent.

The seven individuals originally entered the cave system in Laos' central Xaisomboun province on May 20, reportedly searching for gold. They became trapped when a violent landslide, triggered by torrential rains, sealed off their exit route, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.

The operation received a massive boost on Sunday when a highly skilled Thai rescue team arrived on-site to assist the local Laos Rescue Volunteer for People organization.

"From this moment on, I believe our success is not far away," Kengkard Bongkawong, head of the Thai volunteer disaster and rescue team, announced in an optimistic social media update.

On-scene footage broadcast by the state-run Lao Phattana News highlighted the grueling conditions facing the emergency workers. Headlamp footage showed rescuers in helmets gasping for breath as they squeezed through claustrophobic passageways and waded chest-deep through thick, muddy waters.

The mission boasts elite expertise; among the Thai team is a specialist diver who famously participated in the miraculous 2018 Chiang Rai cave rescue, which successfully freed the "Wild Boars" junior soccer team after 17 days underground.

To replicate that success, Kengkard confirmed that heavy-duty industrial pumps are running continuously day and night to drain the cave's interior. Teams have successfully bored through thick blockages of sand and gravel, positioning them right at the edge of a critical underwater shaft they believe connects directly to the trapped group.

In addition to the subterranean push, surface search teams mapping the terrain above the mountain have identified four vertical shafts. Engineers are evaluating whether these shafts can be utilized as alternative extraction points or communication lines. Rescuers estimate they have less than 20 meters of rock and water left to clear before reaching the primary target zone.

News.Az 

By Aysel Mammadzada