Tham Luang cave rescue — international operation to rescue a group of 13 boys and 1 adult in Tham Luang Nang Non, Thailand in 2018
The 2018 Tham Luang rescue was one of the most complex cave rescues in history, mobilizing 10,000 personnel from dozens of countries to save 13 trapped individuals.
Key Facts
- People rescued
- 13 (12 boys and their coach)
- Days trapped before found
- 9 days out of contact
- Total rescue personnel
- 10,000 people
- Water pumped from cave
- Over 1 billion litres
- Rescue divers
- More than 100 divers
- Deaths during operation
- 2 (Saman Kunan and Beirut Pakbara)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
On 23 June 2018, twelve members of a junior football team aged 11 to 16 and their 25-year-old assistant coach entered Tham Luang Nang Non cave in Chiang Rai, Thailand, after a practice session. Unexpected heavy rainfall rapidly flooded the cave system, blocking the group's exit and trapping them approximately 4 kilometres from the cave entrance.
An international rescue operation involving over 10,000 people, more than 100 divers, 900 police officers, and 2,000 soldiers worked to extract the trapped group. British divers John Volanthen and Rick Stanton located the survivors alive on 2 July. Between 8 and 10 July, all 13 individuals were successfully extracted through narrow, flooded passages using sedation and underwater diving equipment.
All 13 trapped individuals were brought out safely by 10 July 2018. However, former Royal Thai Navy SEAL Saman Kunan died of asphyxiation on 6 July during the operation, and rescue diver Beirut Pakbara died in December 2019 from a blood infection contracted during the rescue. The event drew global attention and prompted international discussion about cave safety and rescue protocols.