The villagers were searching for gold in the cave when flash flooding blocked their way out. The rescue effort includes Thai experts who aided in the dramatic recovery of a youth soccer team from a flooded cave in 2018.
Rescuers are racing to reach seven people who have been trapped in a flooded cave in central Laos for almost a week.
The group of villagers entered the cave in the Xaisomboun province on May 19. They were looking for gold inside the chamber when a heavy downpour triggered a flash flood and blocked the way out, state media reported.
Divers have begun navigating flooded sections of the cave but have not yet been able to reach the group.
"We still do not know whether there are any signs of life or if they are still alive," Bounkham Luanglat, the head of a Laotian volunteer rescue association, told the AFP news agency.
