Rescue teams find five trapped in Laos cave, search for two more continues

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May 27 (Reuters) – Five people trapped in a cave in Laos for nearly a week were found alive on Wednesday, Thai volunteers said, as dozens of Lao and Thai rescuers continued to search for two others.

Kengkard Bongkawong, head of the Thai rescue team, said: “As of 16.30, we found five people. We will continue to search for the other two.”

⁠Chakrakrit Taengtung, another Thai volunteer rescuer, posted a video on social media of himself and five others cheering.

The video showed them in good spirits, raising their arms in the air and smiling.

Seven Lao citizens had entered the cave in Xaisomboun province last week to search for gold before heavy rain and landslides blocked their exit, according to a local volunteer group and state-run Lao Phattha News.

A group of Thai volunteers joined the rescue operation on Sunday. The team included a diver who participated in the rescue of 12 boys and their football coach from a flooded cave in northern Thailand in 2018; This operation attracted global attention and involved British and other foreign divers, US military personnel and other international support.

(Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng, Editing by Hugh Lawson)