Search Suspended for Two Missing Villagers in Xaysomboun Cave

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Rescue teams have suspended operations inside a semi-flooded cave in Xaysomboun after part of the entrance showed signs of collapse, raising serious safety concerns. Two villagers remain missing after flash floods trapped seven men inside the cave on 20 May.

Teams successfully rescued five of the men by 30 May, guided through submerged passages and aided by water pumping operations. The remaining two villagers entered the cave separately and have not been located despite intensive searches. Authorities and international specialists continued managing water flow and monitoring the surrounding terrain to reduce risk and improve conditions for any potential rescue for over 10 days.

The mission faced extreme challenges, including narrow passages, low oxygen levels, rising water, and unstable rock formations. Rescue crews worked under difficult conditions, with vertical clearances reduced to around 30 centimeters in flooded sections on 5 June.

Rescue teams from Laos and Thailand, including foreign divers who took part in Thailand’s 2018 Tham Luang cave rescue, spent days pumping water from the flooded cave and delivering food, medicine and supplies to the five villagers found alive on 29 May.

Efforts were repeatedly hampered by heavy rain, rising water levels and unstable conditions inside the cave. The five men were eventually rescued, but efforts to locate the remaining two villagers continued for another week before being suspended.

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