Tham Luang Cave Rescue

Overview

Tham Luang Cave Rescue refers to the attempts to free a boys soccer team from the Tham Luang Nang Non cave system in Thailand. The 12 boys, aged 11 to 16, entered the cave following a practice. However, due to heavy rainfall, the cave flooded, trapping the boys inside. Rescue attempts occurred over the following two weeks, slowly rescuing the imprisoned occupants.

Background

On June 23rd, 2018, a boys soccer team named the Wild Boars were led by their coach into the Tham Luang Nang Non cave system, a popular tourist destination, to explore. Shortly after arriving in the cave, heavy rainfall flooded the cave, trapping the boys 2.5 miles from the cave's entrance.^[1]

Developements

Online Reaction

On July 2nd, the Thai Navy SEALS made contact with the boys. They published a video of the moment on Facebook. ^[2] The post (shown below, left) received more than 24 million views 771,000 reactions, 770 shares and 68,000 comments in one week.

Three days later, Channel NewsAsia published a video on the rescue options for the boys. These options included, divers attempting to teach the boys, many of whom cannot swim, to dive out, as well as pumping the water out. The post (shown below, right) received more than 1 million views in four days.

On July 10th, Redditor ^[10] iDontLikeYouAnyway posted an image in the /r/pics subreddit of "The four Thai Navy Seals (one medic) that stayed IN the cave with the boys since they were discovered." The post (shown below) received more than 73,000 points (95% pvoted) and 1,700 comments in less than six hours.

Elon Musk Mini-Submarine

On July 5th, Tesla-founder Elon Musk tweeted ^[5] that he would be making an escape pod to help bring the boys to safety. He wrote in three tweeted, "Some good feedback from cave experts in Thailand. Iterating with them on an escape pod design that might be safe enough to try. Also building an inflatable tube with airlocks. Less likely to work, given tricky contours, but great if it does […] Got more great feedback from Thailand. Primary path is basically a tiny, kid-size submarine using the liquid oxygen transfer tube of Falcon rocket as hull. Light enough to be carried by 2 divers, small enough to get through narrow gaps. Extremely robust […] Continue to be amazed by the bravery, resilience & tenacity of kids & diving team in Thailand. Human character at its best." The post (shown below) received more than 25,000 retweets and 200,000 likes, collectively.

Three days later, he published a video of the pod being tested. The post (shown below) received more than 10,000 retweets and 55,000 likes.

On July 10th, all 13 imprisoned members of the soccer team were freed. That day, Elon Musk tweeted,^[7] "Just returned from Cave 3. Mini-sub is ready if needed. It is made of rocket parts & named Wild Boar after kids’ soccer team. Leaving here in case it may be useful in the future. Thailand is so beautiful." The post (shown below) received more than 79,000 retweets and 270,000 likes in 24 hours.

While some praised Musk for his efforts, others mocked him for not providing any real assistance. Twitter^[8] user @EnriqueDiazAlva tweeted, "The unsung heroes here are the security personnel tasked with keeping Elon Musk from fucking up the rescue." The post (shown below, left) received more than 75 retweets and 390 likes in 24 hours.

Twitter^[9] user @IllyBocean tweeted a photoshopped scene from The Simpsons in which Elon says his work is "done here." When questioned about what exactly he did, Musk disappears. The post (shown below, right) received more than 1,000 retweets and 5,600 likes in 24 hours.

That day, Twitter^[10] published a Moments page, archiving the reaction to Musk's submarine.

Rescue

On July 6th, a 38-year-old Thai Navy SEAL named Saman Gunan died attempting to save the children.^[3]

On July 9th, eight of the 13 people have been rescued in two rescue attempts.^[4] Those rescued have been described as "safe and conscious" and have been hospitalized.^[6]

The following day, all 13 people were recovered. The Assocatied Press tweeted, "BREAKING: Thai Navy SEALs say all 12 boys and their coach rescued from cave, ending an ordeal that lasted more than 2 weeks." The post (shown below) received more tahn 28,000 retweets and 79,000 likes in 24 hours.

Search Interest

External References