Rescue workers – including divers – continue to search for 12 members of a youth soccer team believed to be trapped in a cave in the north of Thailand, according to Defence Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan.
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"We have been working almost 24 hours but there are many limitations, the caves are pitch dark and very low level of oxygen in some areas, and scattering rains just made our task more difficult," Kamolchai Kotcha, an official with Thailand's national parks authority, told CNN.
Police Colonel Komsan Saardluan explained to the Associated Press that the cave can flood up to 5 meters during the country's rainy season, which runs from June to October.
The players' ages range between 11 and 16. The Bangkok Post reported that the group was likely trapped after heavy rains flooded a stream located at the entrance of the Tham Luang Nang Non cave. Equipment and bicycles at the mouth of the cave alerted park officials to the possible presence of visitors to the landmark in the area as well as a filed missing child report.
The athletes, who were reportedly accompanied by their coach, visited the Chiang Rai province underground tourist attraction on Saturday.
A ThaiPBS television report said the team members were from various schools in the province.