Divers race to rescue seven villagers trapped in flooded Laos cave

Rescue teams were racing against time on Wednesday to reach seven villagers who have been trapped for a week in a flooded cave in central Laos, a Finnish specialist diver involved in the operation said.

Who is trapped and where

Seven Laotian villagers entered the cave in central Xaysomboun province on May 20. State media reported they were searching for gold when heavy rain caused flash flooding that blocked their exit.

Rescue effort and conditions inside the cave

Finnish diver Mikko Paasi, writing on social media, said rescuers were considering a final search dive into the cave’s last chamber if safety conditions allowed. He wrote:

“If all the possible safety matters can be met today, we are considering a final search dive into the last chamber to locate the lost 7.”

Paasi, who was part of the international team that aided the 2018 retrieval of a youth football team from a flooded Thai cave, warned of difficult conditions inside the system. He described the entrance route as requiring navigation of “hundreds of meters (yards) of constant restrictions, flood waters, collapse hazards and high risk of contaminated air quality.”

The cave system is in a remote area and “extends deep underground, with multiple levels and narrow passages,” the report said. Paasi said the missing villagers “should be trapped in the terminal chamber” about 300 metres from the exit.

Progress, local response and rituals

Authorities, rescuers and villagers have been pumping water from the cave. State-run Lao Economic Daily reported that by Wednesday morning the water level had “dried up considerably” as teams continued to pump it out.

Before rescue operations resumed on Wednesday morning, Laotian rescuers, local officials and villagers performed a traditional spiritual ceremony outside the cave. A Laotian rescue group said they offered chickens and rice alcohol to sacred spirits believed to protect the mountain and rescuers; images shared by rescue teams showed the offerings beside the cave entrance.

Team composition and hopes

Paasi said the rescue team included another diver and a Laos team manager. He added:

“We are still in high spirits that we will find the miners alive as they entered the mine with resources to stay sub-terrain for several days.”

Rescuers have been unable to reach the group directly because of flooding, and were weighing the safety conditions for a final search dive into the terminal chamber.