#Thailand - Wild Boars are in ‘good physical and mental health’

THE 13 “Wild Boars” rescued from a flooded cave in Chiang Rai province were in “good health” overall, doctors said.

There was no need for doctors to prescribe sedatives to aid their sleep as they seemed to be in “very good mental health” despite the ordeal, Public Health Ministry inspector-general Dr Thongchai Lertwilairattapong said. 

At a press conference yesterday morning, he attributed their good mental health to having stuck together as a team under the good oversight of their assistant coach. The first four young footballers to exit the cave, aged 14-16, are now able to eat normal foods and were free from leptospirosis. They would leave Chiangrai Prachanukroh Hospital on July 15 to recuperate at home for another week, Thongchai said.

Families get first glimpse

Two of this batch of footballers had initially shown signs of pneumonia, but had responded well to the medication they were given, he said. The family members of the first four boys were allowed to visit them. They had to wear protective medical gowns, a face mask, hat and boots and maintain a two-metre distance. The second batch of four footballers to exit, aged 12-14, were also found to be in good physical health and free from leptospirosis.

One initially had hypothermia and arrhythmia (an irregular heartbeat) presumably caused by the cave’s cold temperature, but had recovered. 

The four kids were placed on a special diet of easily digestible soft food with a mild taste, he said. It was expected that doctors would later yesterday allow their relatives to visit them following the same precautions as the parents of the first batch. 

The five footballers, aged 11-25, who were brought out on Tuesday, had no hypothermia issue although one of them had signs of pneumonia, he said. There was no need for doctors to give them sedatives as they slept well and seemed to be in “very good mental health”, Thongchai said. 

“It’s possibly because they stayed together as a team throughout the ordeal ... We have to commend the assistant coach for managing them well in the situation.” 

The second and third batches would remain in the hospital for a week for physical recovery and for medical observation in case of any emerging infections, he added. 

After their release they would need to recuperate at home for at least another seven days. Rescuers, volunteers and media members who were at the Tham Luang cave during the rescue operation would also each receive a “medical watch for ailment” card within two weeks, which they could bring to a doctor to get a check-up.

Source - TheNation

Thailand - Footballers, families fully apprised, ready to try for breakthrough

The 12 boys and their coach trapped in Tham Luang Cave for 16 days have been fully briefed on the rescue plan and are in good spirits and health, mission chief Narongsak Osottanakorn said on Sunday.

“They are ready and decided by themselves to participate in the operation to extract them from the cave,” Narongsak said. They are physically and mentally strong, he said.

Their families, who have been camped outside the cave since the group went missing on June 23, were informed of the plan and agreed it should go ahead.

They were invited at 7am to talk to members of the rescue mission.

Narongsak told the press on Sunday morning that 13 foreign diving experts and five professional Thai divers entered the cave at 10am and would begin the extraction process as soon as possible. 

The first of the boys was expected to be brought out after about 11 hours, around 9pm.

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The 12 members of the Mu Pa Academy football club, ages 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old coach went missing in the Thailand’s fourth-longest cave on June 23 after flash flooding blocked their exit route.

A multinational rescue operation led to their being found safe on a dry ledge, but their extraction through narrow, still-flooded accessways has posed a dangerous challenge, especially amid concern for their health after being trapped without light or nourishment for so long.

Narongsak said Australian doctors had examined the footballers and determined they were strong enough for the extraction to begin.

They’d participated in rescue drills in the past few days, he said.

The decision to launch the mission on Sunday came after three chambers inside the cave drained enough to walk through and because a fresh rainstorm is in the forecast. Rescue workers are working outside the cave are trying to block water from entering the cave.

Source - TheNation