(Krit Promsakla Na Sakolnakorn/Thai News Pix via AP)
Rescue teams gather in the Chiang Rai cave on June 25, 2018.
- A soccer team and its coach are stranded in a partially flooded cave system in northern Thailand.
- They have been told that they either need to learn to dive or wait months for flooding to subside before they can leave.
- The map shows how complicated it will be to get them out.
A soccer team who are stranded in a Thai cave system have been told that it may take months to get them out.
The 12 teenage boys and their coach were found alive and relatively healthy on Monday, but were told that the only ways they can escape are by learning to scuba dive, getting dragged out by divers, or waiting months for the flooding trapping them in the cave to subside.
The Tham Luang cave system in Chiang Rai, where they are trapped, is a complex series of tunnels that are now partially flooded:
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The boys, who are aged between 11 and 16, and their 25-year-old coach were found alive and relatively healthy on an elevated dry rock about 2.5 miles from the mouth of the cave after nine days of searches.
They entered the cave on June 23, the BBC reported. It was likely dry when they entered, but rushing waters later clogged the way back with mud and debris.
Rescuers found the team on Monday night after nine days of searches. Divers had to make their way through a series of sharp, narrow bends in dark, flooded conditions, the BBC said.
Water levels in the cave are expected to rise as the summer goes on, as Thailand's rainy season usually lasts from May until October.
Divers are supplying the group with food and medicine, Thailand's Navy SEALs said on Facebook.
Two Thai medical personnel have also joined the group to keep them company and monitor their symptoms before they are rescued, the SEALs added.