Rescuers, including a Finnish diver based in Thailand who helped save a youth soccer team trapped in a cave in 2018, are conducting a perilous operation to find seven artisanal gold miners trapped in a cave in central Laos. The miners have been trapped for about a week after early monsoon rains caused a collapse roughly 200 yards inside the mine.
What happened
The miners became trapped in a hand-dug gold mine located in a dense jungle far from any road. The entrance is now a base of rescue operations, which have expanded to include wifi, electricity, water pumps, and a 2.5-mile road cut through the jungle by local villagers desperate to assist. The collapse occurred as monsoon rains flooded and destabilized the tunnels. Rescue divers must navigate extremely narrow passages—around the width of a car tire—where visibility is zero under the muddy water. Divers carry their oxygen tanks behind them and must exhale to squeeze through some areas, making it impossible to turn back once inside.
Mikko Paasi, the Finnish diver involved in the rescue, said the operation is slow and dangerous due to the risk of further collapse and the cramped, air-limited conditions. The trapped miners face threats from hypothermia, carbon dioxide poisoning, and limited food and water supplies. However, local villagers familiar with mining practices believe the miners could have provisions for several days inside the tunnels.
Why it matters
This rescue effort echoes the high-profile 2018 soccer team cave rescue in Thailand, but the conditions in Laos are more hazardous due to the smaller, more restrictive tunnels and less-developed infrastructure. The operation highlights the ongoing dangers faced by artisanal miners in remote regions vulnerable to seasonal flooding and landslides. Successful rescue would be a significant humanitarian achievement given the complexity and risks involved.
Background
In 2018, a widely publicized rescue saved a youth soccer team trapped in Thailand’s Tham Luang cave, with international experts including divers playing critical roles. Mikko Paasi was among those divers then and has now returned to assist in Laos. Artisanal mining is common in Laos but often involves informal, unsupported tunnels prone to collapse. Monsoon rains regularly pose severe risks to miners working underground in this region of Southeast Asia.
Sources
This article is based on reporting and publicly available information from the following source:
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