Thai Cave Rescue: First Pictures Of Boys Recovering In Hospital

The boys are in isolation to prevent infections from outsiders.
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First pictures have emerged of the schoolboys recovering in hospital after being rescued from a cave in Thailand on Tuesday.

A video showing the boys wearing hospital gowns and doing “v for victory” signs was released on Wednesday.

Nurses can also be seen in the clip wearing face masks and hair nets.

The latest images come just hours after the remaining pupils and their football coach were rescued on Tuesday after becoming trapped in a cave for more than two weeks when heavy rainfall blocked their exit.

The 12 young footballers – aged between 11 and 16 - and their 25-year-old coach were trapped in the cave in an ordeal that riveted people around the world. 

The Wild Boars players are now recovering at a hospital in Chiang Rai.

They lost weight during their ordeal, but had water while they were trapped and are in good health, an official said on Wednesday.

Public health inspector Thongchai Lertwilairatanapong said the boys and their coach “took care of themselves well in the cave”.

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First pictures of the boys recovering in hospital have emerged.

Four boys rescued on Sunday can eat normal food and walk around, and the four pulled out on Monday are reportedly eating soft food.

Thongchai said one member of the final group of four boys and the coach who arrived at the hospital on Tuesday evening had a slight lung infection.

Two of the first group had lung infection as well, and will need medicine for the next seven days.

The average weight loss was 4.4lb for those with known information, he added. 

The boys are in isolation in hospital to prevent infections by outsiders, but family members have seen some of them from behind a glass screen, and after a period of time with no problems, the family members will be allowed closer while dressed in sterilised clothing.

Health officials said the boys will have a mental health evaluation to address any problems caused by their ordeal.

Outside experts have said the group identity of the team-mates and their youth will aid their ability to recover.

The boys and their coach went missing after football practice on June 23, setting out on an adventure to explore the cave complex near the border with Myanmar and celebrate a boy’s birthday.

British divers found the 13 huddled on a muddy bank in a partly flooded chamber several kilometers inside the complex on Monday last week.

The path out of the cave was considered especially complicated because of twists and turns in narrow flooded passages.

Last Friday Saman Kunan, a former Thai navy diver volunteering to work on the rescue, died while replenishing oxygen canisters. 

The boy were guided out by a pair of divers though rocky, muddy and watery passages that in places were just a crawl space.