(Refiles to add editor’s details in signoff, no changes to text)
May 27 (Reuters) – Five people who had been trapped inside a cave in Laos for about a week were found alive on Wednesday, as dozens of Lao and Thai rescuers continued to search for two others, Thai volunteers said.
“As of 4:30 p.m. (0930 GMT), we found five people. We will continue to search for the other two,” said Kengkard Bongkawong, head of the Thai rescue team.
Another Thai volunteer rescuer, Chakrakrit Taengtung, posted a video on social media with him and the five all cheering.
The video showed they were in good spirits, raising their arms into the air and smiling.
The seven Lao nationals had entered the cave in Xaisomboun province last week to look for gold before heavy rain and a landslide blocked their exit, according to a local volunteer group and state-run Lao Phattha News.
A Thai volunteer group joined the rescue operation on Sunday. The team included a diver who took part in the 2018 rescue of 12 boys and their soccer coach from a flooded cave in northern Thailand, an operation that drew global attention and involved British and other foreign divers, U.S. military personnel and other international support.
(Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng, Editing by Hugh Lawson)
