Four more men freed from flooded Laos cave in hazardous rescue mission

Four more miners who were trapped in a flooded cave in Laos for 10 days have been freed by divers, but two people are still missing as rescuers continue to crawl through narrow, deluged tunnels and sharp rocks to find them. The first of the party of seven men was rescued on Friday in a perilous rescue mission which has required teams to drain water from the cave and navigate collapse hazards.

The four men extracted on Saturday had been found crouched and huddled on a rocky ledge inside a chamber about 300 metres (980ft) from the cave entrance on Wednesday, but rescuers were unable to immediately evacuate them. Teams supplied the party of five they found on Wednesday with water, soft food and foil blankets to keep them warm while they remained inside the cave.

The first man to be rescued was filmed emerging covered in mud and walking unsteadily; as helpers cheered he cried out in pain and one rescuer warned others to be careful because his hands were injured. "The first one is out.

Laos

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