Quang Binh (VNA) - Howard Limbert, a British caver who has spent the last 30 years of his life in central QuangBinh province and studying the caves in Vietnam, and Nguyen Chau A, Director ofOxalis Company, are heading to Thailand’s Chiang Rai province on July 4 tooffer their assistance to a group of young boys that have been trapped in a cavefor over nine days.

A team of rescuers,including members of the Thai Royal Army and others from at least six countriessuch as the UK, the US and China, located the youngsters on July 2 night. 

The12 boys aged 11 to 16 and their 25-year-old coach were found at a higher groundabout 400m away from the first predicted location after their nine days trappedinside Tham Luang cave.

"They are luckythe cave is warm because caves in other parts of the world, it would have beendifficult to survive that length of time," Howard said exclusively to VietnamNews in an e-mail.

Limbert found SonDoong - the world’s biggest cave - in Quang Binh province in 2006. He praisedthe expertise of British cavers, John Volanthen and Rick Stanton, both expertson cave rescues, who had taken part in many rescue dives in the past.

"The Britishcave divers are the best in the world and if they couldn’t find them, no onecould," Limbert continued. "Thai authorities were very sensible inarranging the British divers to help out."

He added that he waspositive "the boys will recover well when they are back with theirfamilies."

But he also warned ofdifficulties for a full rescue. "Good news is that they have found theboys safe but still difficult times ahead," he wrote, but declined toelaborate until further details are known. 

Governor of Chiang Raiprovince Narongsak Osottanakorn told reporters on July 3 that it would taketime to get the cave-trapped boys and their football coach out as the team areexhausted and the cave is deeply submerged. 

The governor said they are all safe, but the rescue missionis not completed and there are still challenges ahead in bringing them out ofthe flooded cave in Mae Sai district.

He said the boys were exhausted given the fact that they werethere without food and water for almost 10 days, adding that 16 Thai Navy SEALdivers have been sent to the location to stay with the boys, to keep tabs ontheir health and prepare them for evacuation. The divers took some special foodsuch as power gel and water for them.

Narongsak said the process to prepare the boys for evacuationwould take a few days and the best way is still being considered. Meanwhile,other efforts to access the cave, such as drilling through the cave roof, andfinding alternative passages, as well as draining water out of the cave, willcontinue.

Located in the Khun Nam NangNon Forest Park, Tham Luang cave is an adventure tourism destination inThailand. It is often closed during the raining season from July to December.Visitors are allowed to enter maximum 700m deep into the cave.-VNA