Rescuers race to free Thai cave boys as heavy rains forecast

Rescuers raced to pump water from a cave in northern Thailand as forecasted heavy rain threatened to complicate efforts to free a young soccer team found trapped for ten days.

Divers struggling through narrow passages and murky waters found the 12 boys and their coach last night on an elevated rock about 4km from the mouth of the cave.

The boys were weak, but had only minor injuries.

News of the survival of the "Wild Boar" team sparked jubilation in a nation gripped by the drama, with news websites and Facebook users celebrating their discovery and hailing the rescuers as heroes.

"Thank you all Thais, thank you all foreigners, everybody is a hero and everybody helped each other," Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha told reporters.

A video shot by the rescuers in flickering torchlight revealed boys clad in shorts and red and blue shirts sitting or standing on the rock above an expanse of water.

"How many of you are there - 13? Brilliant," a member of the multinational team tells the boys in English. "You have been here 10 days. You are very strong".

"Thank you," one of the boys said.

Another asked when they will get out, to which the rescuer answered: "Not today. You have to dive."
  (rte)
 3/7/18
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