Thai rescue: Hopes high 4 boys, coach will be freed from cave Tuesday
Tham Luang caves, Thailand (CNN)Divers who have descended into a flooded cave in northern Thailand plan to rescue the four remaining boys and their soccer coach in a third and final mission Tuesday, the mission's rescue commander said.
Nineteen divers entered the cave at 10 a.m. local time (11 p.m. Monday ET) and will navigate the tunnels to bring out five members of the Wild Boar soccer team, as well as four experts who have been by their side more or less constantly since they were found early last week.
"I hope all four kids... the coach, and the doctor and three SEALs will be all out today," Former Chiang Rai governor and rescue mission commander Narongsak Osotthanakorn told reporters Tuesday.
Eight of the 12 boys trapped within the flooded cave were taken out during the first two days of rescue operations. They're now recovering in hospital and are said to be "healthy."
The boys were exploring the caves on June 23 with their coach when they were trapped inside by heavy seasonal rains. After they were found on July 2, officials cautioned it could take some time to get them out, but with heavy rain forecast to hit the region authorities decided to act.
Photos: Thai soccer team trapped in cave
The body of Saman Kunan, a former Thai Navy SEAL, is carried during a repatriation and religious rites ceremony on Friday, July 6. Kunan died Friday as he returned from an operation to deliver oxygen tanks to the cave. He ran out of air while underwater, an official said.
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Thai police take a break for breakfast as rescue operations continue on Wednesday, July 4.
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Water is pumped out of the cave on Tuesday, July 3.
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Workers fix the road leading to the cave on July 3.
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Divers prepare a light to be used for the underwater search on July 2.
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Rescue workers wait at the entrance to the cave on July 2.
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Some of the team's family members celebrate after receiving news that the team was alive.
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Technicians lift water pumps to the drilling site on July 1.
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Soldiers and rescuers work outside the cave complex on July 1.
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Monks attend a Buddhist prayer for the team on July 1.
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Scuba tanks are delivered to the search site on July 1.
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Rescue workers carry water-pumping equipment into the cave on July 1.
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A Thai Air Force worker drops near a possible cave opening on June 30.
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British cave diver Robert Charles Harper explores an opening on June 29.
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Relatives of the trapped team members pray on June 27.
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Family members waited more than a week for news of their loved ones.
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Thai soldiers bring hoses and additional water pumps as the search for the team continued on June 27.
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Volunteer paramedics wait near the cave entrance on June 27.
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A rescuer looks for a cave entrance on June 27.
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Rescuers search the cave on June 26.
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Thai soldiers relay cable at the search site on June 26.
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Photos: Thai soccer team trapped in cave
Rescuers walk toward the entrance of the cave where four boys and their coach are still trapped, as rescue operations resume on Tuesday morning, July 10
