After the cave rescue

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After the cave rescue

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I don't know where to post this, so Mods please move it if required. There have been several reports about what is going to happen now, both with the cave and the boys. It all has a good chance of turning into a complete circus.
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Cash-spinner or death trap?

https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/specia ... eath-trap-

The dark, unpleasant smell and twisted passages inside a typical cave might not look too alluring, and the Department of Mineral Resources might even agree with you, given the paucity of cave experts on staff.

However, it is having to think again about its attitude to caves after the world turned its attention to the rescue of the Moo Paa Academy's 12 teen footballers and their coach, trapped inside Tham Luang cave inside Tham Luang-Khun Nam Nang Non Park in Chiang Rai's Mae Sai district for almost two weeks.

The 13 footballers ventured into the flooded cave after finishing practice on June 23.
Rescuers complained the cave had not surveyed properly. Stung into action by the lack of information on the cave which could have assisted the rescue effort, the department has declared it will explore caves nationwide by working closely with the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation.

It will set up a proper tourism management plan inside the caves with the safety of tourists its main concern, amid news the department of parks intends turning the Tham Luang cave into a major tourist destination.
That will upset those who say the department should be addressing the safety of the complex well before it tries making money from the international rescue attempt which took the life of a former Seal diver.

Speaking of safety, observers say the department must address the question of how safe the cave was at the time the boys visited.

While signage was said to be present, it wasn't prominent. Nor was there any timely warning to visitors that the cave was prone to flooding and that heavy rains were due within a week of their ill-fated trip into the cave's depths.
The boys planned to spend just an hour inside the cave. However, they found they could not get back out again as water from heavy rain and flooding off the mountain filled the cave entrance, which forced them deeper inside its interior.

A couple of weeks later, the rescue team was to run into the same problem, and had to rely on powerful pumps which extracted huge amounts of water from the cave just to enable them to get the boys to safety.

Located 453 metres above mean sea level, the Tham Luang cave is a huge limestone cave complex with a large cavern at its entrance. The complex has many stalactites and stalagmites and three smaller caves. The department says that to prevent a repeat of the recent drama, it would put up "clear signs" to warn tourists which parts of the cave are off-limits. Does that go far enough?

What is the plan?

Tawsaporn Nuchanong, chief of the Department of Mineral Resources, said staff are also faced with a rehabilitation task now the rescue is over.
He said the ecological system inside caves is sensitive and fragile so proper management is needed to protect and preserve it.

Unfortunately, no deep study has been done on the country's caves due to limited resources.
According to the department, the country has around 2,000 caves nationwide.

However, little about their geology is known, as few have been properly surveyed.
Mr Tawsaporn said the department established a cave exploration team two years ago with a purpose of surveying and collecting information about the key caves in the country. To date the team has explored 20 caves.

The departments will closely work together to survey the caves chosen by the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation based on number of tourists visiting and their outstanding geographical appearance.

The first pilot project will be carried out at 10 caves nationwide. The departments will meet in September to draw up a list of caves to be surveyed, with Tham Luang cave as their top priority, for an in-depth survey.

"We're aware that the case of Tham Luang cave will inspire more number of people to visit caves in the country. That is the reason we need to have a proper plan for tourism management," he said.

After the survey, the department will produce a cave map, which is a basic source of information before the next stage of zoning caves according to the level of difficulty which travellers may face in gaining access to them.

In the basic zone, tourists will be able to walk on a trail provided. At the next level up, forest officials or local officials would be needed to guide them.

At the highest level, some caves will be no longer be open to tourist visits due to the scale of the danger.
Russarint Siripattarapureenom, the department's geologist who made a survey of Tham Luang cave in 2015 and is also on the cave survey team, said the department is building up a cave database.

She said the department worked with Mahidol University to explore the cave in a climate change project.
It found Tham Luang cave is about 100 million years old and is regarded as a relatively new cave.
The team surveyed a length of only 700 metres, and from that one-day survey they came up with an initial map which gives the scale of the first main chamber.

The team went to the cave in March and found that some parts of the cave was still submerged by water, she said.
She said the department was also keen to find out if the cave should be declared a geo park, similar to the Satun Geo Park.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) in April declared the Satun site was a Unesco global geo park thanks to its outstanding geological landscape.
At Tham Luang cave, a map drawn up by the department and a map by cave explorer Martin Ellis were both used in the rescue operation.

New era of cave visits

The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation takes care 169 caves inside its parks nationwide.
Thanya Nethithammakul, chief of the department, said all visitors who want to visit caves under the department's responsibility must register.

Moreover, they must abide by the authority's instructions on how to visit the cave safely. A local guide or forest official must accompany them in case they run into danger.

"Tham Luang cave will serve as a good example on how to visit a cave safely.
Regarding the Moo Paa case, I think people were already aware of how dangerous it can be if trapped inside a cave. So they will make cave trips with safety uppermost in their minds,'' he said.

The department is now restoring the cave to its prior state, which is likely to cost about 42 million baht.
Mr Thanya said the department has set up measures to rehabilitate the cave to protect the cave's sensitive ecological system. Tourist visits are likely to increase after the rescue drama, he said.

He said that everyone wants to see "Pattaya Beach" and the "Nern Nom Sao" slope where the 12 teenage football players and their coach took shelter to escape rising water levels.
If there is no proper management plan, all sensitive environments inside the cave will be affected by human beings, he said.

Under the rehab plan, the department has already cleared over 2,400 metres of pipelines for pumping water from two creeks in the cave.
The department also planned to restore the Tham Luang-Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park's landscape to bring it in line with that of a museum to hold the statue of the former Navy Seals diver Saman Gunan, who died during the rescue.

For the long-term plan, it is eyeing an upgrade of the 5,000-rai Tham Luang-Khun Nam Nang Non park into a national park so it can be better managed.
Mr Thanya said the park gets around 500,000 baht per year for management costs, which is unlikely to be enough for dealing with the likely big increase in tourist visits.

As a national park, it could get more money from national park entrance fees to cover expenditure to take care of the site.
A stronger law on national parks would also enhance forest officials' ability to protect the sensitive ecological system in the park. The department will hold a public hearing with stakeholders on its plans.

No timeframe to re-open cave

The 17-day rescue operation involved 657 forest officials and over 200 agencies. It had damaged damaged the cave's ecological system, in some places severely. Mr Thanya the cave will be properly surveyed once the water inside has receded to a safe level.
The department is also meeting its staff nationwide about how to enhance visitor safety. An order to close some unsafe caves during the rainy season has already been issued. It is not sure how much priority the department will give to ensuring ecological system recovery versus visitor safety, or whether the desire to make money will trump such concerns.
Sombat Yumuang, director of Geo-Informatics Centre for Thailand, Chulalongkorn University, said an early warning system would help ensure tourist safety.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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Big party planned for cave rescue contributors

https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/genera ... recent_box

The government will stage the “United as One” party on Aug 1 to thank everyone who took part in and helped with the rescue mission of 12 young footballers and their coach from the Tham Luang cave in Chiang Rai.

The party will be held at the Royal Plaza in Bangkok from 6-9pm after His Majesty the King granted permission for the use of the venue, Prime Minister’s Office Minister Suwaphan Tanyuvardhana said on Saturday.

Several thousand people are expected to attend, including the prime minister and all cabinet ministers.

The plight of the Wild Boars football team gripped the world after the boys and their coach became trapped in the cave in Mae Sai on June 23. An army of experts from many countries was mobilised to bring them out, supported by hundreds more people doing everything from cooking to laundry.

Invitations will be sent to everyone involved with the mission, as well as to individual volunteers.
"The names will come from the registration book at the cave. The wife of the late Lt Cdr Samarn Kunan who lost his life during the mission will also be invited," Mr Suwaphan said.

Also invited will be foreigners, ambassadors and military attaches, with a list to be provided by the Foreign Ministry, he added.
The third group comprises members of Thai and international media who reported from the site. The Public Relations Department will prepare their names.

The fourth group includes the many people who helped behind the scenes, such as farmers who allowed their fields to be inundated by water pumped out of the cave, volunteers who provided transport, laundry and massage services. Their names will be provided by provincial administrations and organisations. They will be provided with transport and lodging in Bangkok.

The food served will be cocktail-style provided by His Majesty and the government. Some tables will also be prepared.
Meanwhile, the armed forces have been reviewing the lessons learned during the rescue operation in order to improve preparedness for future emergencies.

Army chief Chalermchai Sittisart ordered units involved in the Tham Luang operation to detail equipment usage, personnel management and search and rescue capabilities so that the information can be used improve future operations and upgrade the capacity of the army in providing relief.

Col Sirichan Ngathong, a deputy army spokesperson, said Gen Chalermchai wanted to improve the skills of army personnel and increase the number of specialists.

A seminar will be held in Lop Buri to gather information that would help guide future missions, Col Sirichan said.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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^^ first liar won't have a chance.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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Cave boys speak of 'miracle' rescue after hospital discharge

https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/genera ... bottom_box

Twelve boys and their football coach who survived a highly dangerous and dramatic rescue from a flooded Thai cave spoke publicly of their incredible ordeal for the first time on Wednesday at a press conference that was beamed around the world.
The "Wild Boars" team members looked healthy and happy as they answered questions about the nine days they spent in the dark before being discovered by members of an international rescue team.

A packed crowd greeted the youngsters after they were discharged from hospital in Chiang Rai, and watched as they played with footballs on a small makeshift pitch before taking their seats.
"It is a miracle," Wild Boars footballer Adul Sam-on, 14, said of the rescue, as the boys were gently quizzed about their terrifying experience.

Coach Ekkapol Chantawong said the relative strength or weakness of the boys did not determine the order in which they were evacuated. He added that the boys would ordain as monks in honour of the former Navy Seal who died during the mission.

The team had no food at all until they were found deep in the complex, surviving only on water that dripped down the side of the cave.
But doctors said all 13 were in good physical and mental health after recuperating in hospital.

The briefing was tightly controlled, with experts warning of possible long-term distress from the more than two weeks they spent trapped inside a cramped, flooded chamber of the Tham Luang cave in Mae Sai district in Chiang Rai province..

The Public Relations Department in Chiang Rai solicited questions from news outlets in advance, which were forwarded to psychiatrists for screening.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha urged media on Wednesday to be "cautious in asking unimportant questions" that could cause unspecified damage.

Interest in the saga has been intense, with film production houses already eyeing a Hollywood treatment of the drama.
Doctors have advised families of the players, aged 11 to 16, that they should avoid letting them contact journalists for at least one month.
Families of the youngsters have eagerly awaited their homecoming.

Khameuy Promthep, the grandmother of 13-year-old Dom, one of the boys rescued from the cave, told AFP in an interview at their family shop in Mae Sai near the Myanmar border on Wednesday that she was very excited.
"This is the happiest day of my life," she said.

The daring Thai-led international effort to rescue the team captivated the world after the football team walked into the cave on June 23 and were trapped by rising floodwaters.
After nine days without food, they were found emaciated and huddled in a group on a muddy ledge by British divers several kilometres inside Tham Luang.

Rescuers debated on the best plan to bring them out but ultimately decided on a risky operation that involved diving them through waterlogged passages while they were sedated to keep them calm and carrying them out in military-grade stretchers.

Not even the foreign cave diving specialists who took part were sure the mission would work and many expressed relief when it was all over after the final five were rescued on July 10.

Further attention was drawn to the rescue by a highly public spat between entrepreneur Elon Musk and a British caver who took part in the rescue.
Tesla CEO Musk called Vernon Unsworth a "pedo" in an extraordinary social media attack, after the caving expert had ridiculed Musk's plan to recover the trapped group using a miniature submarine.
Mr Musk on Wednesday apologised to Mr Unsworth over the slur, for which he had provided no justification or explanation.

"(H)is actions against me do not justify my actions against him, and for that I apologise to Mr. Unsworth and to the companies I represent as leader," Mr Musk wrote on Twitter. "The fault is mine and mine alone."
Mr Musk's attack on Mr Unsworth had drawn widespread outrage and briefly sent shares in Tesla tumbling. Mr Unsworth told AFP he may take legal action against Musk over the offensive tweet.

The presenter of the televised news conference said the boys would return home on Wednesday night for the first time since emerging from the cave.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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Boar interviews come under fire

https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/genera ... under-fire

Thai officials have slammed international news agencies' exclusive interviews with the boys rescued from Tham Luang cave in Chiang Rai, saying the media coverage risks violating child protection laws.

Deputy permanent secretary for justice Tawatchai Thaikyo on Friday warned that the foreign media's questions may have a negative impact on the boys' recoveries and lead them to suffer from post-traumatic stress.
He was responding to reports that some international news agencies have already conducted interviews with the boys since they returned home.

ABC News was among agencies which reportedly secured exclusive interviews with some of the members of the Wild Boars football team.

"The interviews should not have been done at all. Some questions can trigger fear in the boys, especially questions about the use of medication during their extraction from the cave. Such questions only serve to remind them of the trauma they went through and may lead to further psychological issues in the future," Mr Tawatchai said.

Mr Tawatchai faulted the international news agencies for ignoring a request by Thai authorities for their cooperation in respecting the privacy of the boys and their families.

However, he praised Thai media organisations for cooperating.

"Although the foreign agencies claim that they had permission from the boys' parents, it is not right because Thai and foreign journalists were given clear guidelines for their coverage. The parents of the boys might not be prepared to cope with what's to come," Mr Tawatchai said.

He urged the agencies to follow the same guidelines used when minors are questioned in court.
There, children's testimonies are overseen by social workers or psychiatrists, Mr Tawatchai said.

"We thought that foreign media organisations understood conventions on children's rights and procedures to protect the young but their standards have turned out to be lower than expected. It seems they lack common sense," he said.
Twelve local football players aged 11-16 and their 25-year-old coach from the Moo Paa (Wild Boars) Academy football team entered Tham Luang cave in Chiang Rai's Mae Sai district on June 23 and were trapped inside by rising floodwater.

An international rescue operation located them after 10 days and brought them out in batches over a three-day period from July 8-10.
The incident made international headlines as the cave extraction was considered to be the toughest of its kind and drew help from local and international rescuers and supporters.
Boonruang Triruangworawat, director-general of the Ministry of Public Health's Department of Mental Health, said interviews with the boys could affect their mental health in the long term.
Interviews should be put off for at least two months as the boys are still under observation, he advised.

Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam also warned that the foreign media's interviews with the boys risk violating laws protecting children's rights.
The government had instructed officials from the Social Development and Human Security to look after the boys, Mr Wissanu said.

However, Anira Thinon, a social development and human security official in Chiang Rai, said that foreign reporters had not obtained permission from officials and had conducted their interviews when the officials assigned to look after the boys were absent.

"The media will be held responsible under the children protection law which regulates media coverage and the foreign media is no exception," she said.

Thepchai Yong, president of the Thai Broadcast Journalists Association, posting on Facebook, criticised foreign media intrusion on the boys' privacy.
"While you are concerned that Thai media will disturb the Wild Boars, the foreign reporters have turned up in droves at their houses," Mr Thepchai wrote

"They include ABC News, CBS and several others. They proudly declared that they had exclusive interviews with the children while the Thai media have been told to stay away," he added.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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Have a good party heros
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Re: After the cave rescue

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"The interviews should not have been done at all. Some questions can trigger fear in the boys, especially questions about the use of medication during their extraction"



Again the fear the authorities seem to have as soon as the sedation is mentioned.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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MDMK wrote: Sun Jul 22, 2018 3:05 pm
"The interviews should not have been done at all. Some questions can trigger fear in the boys, especially questions about the use of medication during their extraction"



Again the fear the authorities seem to have as soon as the sedation is mentioned.
I don’t know about the sedation aspect, but I’ve heard western psychologists state that interviewing the boys could trigger negative thoughts and hamper their recovery - right or wrong, it would appear that some of the international media went against the specific request to leave the boys in peace - no doubt for getting the prize scoop
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Re: After the cave rescue

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Oh I agree with you DannyBoy, the experts should definitely be followed on this one - and the press should tone some respect and understanding. I have just had a bee in my bonnet all week about the sedation thing and the Thai authorities first outright denying sedation was used and then playing it down to a silly extent saying a very mild anti-anxiety med was used. I just don't get their denial/downplaying and it annoys me. But with you all the way on the possible (hell maybe even probable) damage the boys could suffer by intrusive, insensitive and constant press attention.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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^^ Well that was yet another Pinnochio moment at the top. Then I guess no one dared gainsay him.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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hhinner wrote: Sun Jul 22, 2018 7:31 pm ^^ Well that was yet another Pinnochio moment at the top. Then I guess no one dared gainsay him.
Well, at least he kept his nose out of it after that outburst!
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Re: After the cave rescue

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'Cave boys' to be ordained this week

https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/genera ... -this-week

MAE SAI, Chiang Rai: Most members of the Thai youth football team rescued from a flooded cave will have their heads shaved, don robes and be ordained in a Buddhist ceremony this week, officials said Sunday.

The Wild Boars have been enjoying their first few days home after being discharged from hospital and being ordered to speak to the media at a government-mandated press conference about their harrowing ordeal inside the Tham Luang cave near Mai Sae district town.

Praphun Khomjoi, Chiang Rai's Buddhist office chief, said that the Wild Boars will have their heads shaved on Tuesday and attend a robe ceremony the next day.
They will then stay in different monasteries until leaving and again returning home on Aug 4.

One of the children, Adul Sam-on, will not join them as he is Christian, the governor said.

The 12 boys, aged 11 to 16, and their coach went into the cave complex on June 23 after practice and were trapped by floods from monsoon rains.
An international rescue effort succeeded in removing them all.

They had survived on water dripping from rocks for nine days before being found emaciated on a muddy ledge by two British rescue divers, who helped extract the team a week later in a risky mission.

All made a speedy recovery and were judged none the worse for wear after a week in hospital.

On their first day out they prayed for good fortune in a traditional Buddhist ceremony and mourned a former Thai navy underwater team diver who died during the rescue efforts.
Now they will go a step further and spend time living in a monastery before returning to normal life, a common practice among Buddhists.

"They will ordain for nine days," according to Prachon Pratsakul, the Chaing Rai governor, who held a briefing for reporters Sunday at the Mae Sai district office.
"There will be about 11 boys ordained as novices and one ordained as a monk, which is Coach Ek," he said, referring to Ekkapol Chantawong, who has already spent years in the monastery and achieved monkhood.
He is credited with keeping the boys calm inside the cave.

Authorities have told media to give the teammates time to adjust to their lives but interest in the story remains high, with production houses looking to make a Hollywood-style film on the saga.

Their story is ready-made for the screen, with a bold rescue operation that entailed sedating and moving the boys out of the cave through treacherous passageways.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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Forced ordain.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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No different to compulsory religious education in schools in the UK. Although it has since been amended that pupils are not forced to attend any more.
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Re: After the cave rescue

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europtimiste wrote: Mon Jul 23, 2018 12:43 pm Forced ordain.
Not forced. The boys chose to spend the time in a Wat as a way of giving thanks and as a fulfillment of Buddhist life. You need to spend more time with Thais too understand them and their way of life.
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