An Australian doctor, lauded for his part in rescuing 12 young Thai footballers and their coach from a flooded cave system, has described the moment divers realised they would have to “swim” the trapped boys out of the cave.
Writing on Facebook as he prepared to return home on an Australian airforce transport plane, Richard Harris described the massive efforts by Thai and international cave divers to rescue the boys from deep within the Tham Luang Nang Non cave system after they were first reached by the British divers John Volanthen and Rick Stanton.
Harris captured international attention after he entered the cave and then elected to stay with the trapped members of the Wild Board football team for three days.
He paid tribute to the former Thai navy Seal Saman Kunan, who died during the rescue efforts delivering air tanks into the cave system.
Harris, who works for South Australia’s ambulance service and is known as Harry, had been identified for his expertise in cave rescues, with British divers requesting he join the team.
“By the time we arrived on site, local divers ... had already been doing the most extraordinary dives through the cave and laying the very robust rope which made all subsequent dives to the soccer team not only possible, but safe,” he wrote.
“The efforts and skill of these guys in blazing this trail cannot be underestimated. Following someone else’s line is very much easier than finding your own way.
“[The first British divers] not only found the children and coach alive, but conveyed the gravity of the situation to the rest of the world and thus the rescue started in earnest. The four Brits then did further supply dives to the soccer players, the coach and the four Thai navy Seals which allowed them to prepare and sustain themselves for the rescue ultimately.”
Harris also described the scale of the effort that he encountered when he first arrived.
“On the ground, the Thais and international community sent in swarms of men and women to provide everything from catering, communications, media and of course the huge teams of workers filling the cave with tonnes and tonnes of equipment to try and lower the water and sustain the diving operations.
“I have never seen anything like it with man battling to control the natural forces of the monsoon waters. Local climbing and rope access workers rigged the dry cave section for that part of the rescue and scoured the bush for more entrances to the cave.
“Drilling teams attempted to get through nearly a kilometre of rock to the boys’ location. And all this time four brave navy Seals sat with the Wild Boars knowing they were in as much danger as the kids.”
Describing the decision to remove the trapped footballers using specialised scuba equipment, regarded as a difficult and dangerous option, Harris said that with further rain and the boys’ condition they had run out of other options.
“The decision to swim the players out was made and the rescue went ahead. The pressure that was put on [the rescue divers] was immense and they never dropped the ball for a second.
“When the kids and coach were delivered to chamber three, the US para-rescue teams, [and other divers and medical staff] assessed the kids, then whisked them out of the cave to a field hospital before moving them to the massive hospital in Chiang Rai centre.
“We were lucky to visit the boys, coach and Seals and all the beautiful medical and nursing staff in the hospital on our way home.”
After the successful rescue, Harris was commended by Australia’s foreign minister, Julie Bishop.
“He was an integral part of the rescue attempt,” said Bishop, who added that the doctor was internationally renowned for his cave rescue expertise.