Asia
Experts from Thailand who aided the dramatic 2018 retrieval of a youth football team from a Thai cave joined rescue efforts on Monday to extract the seven people, Laotian state media said.
Rescuers work to reach seven people who have been trapped in a cave in Xaisomboun province, Laos, on May 25, 2026. (Photo: Metta Tham Rescue Kalasin via AP)
26 May 2026 05:18PM
BANGKOK: A search operation for seven villagers trapped inside a flooded cave in central Laos entered its seventh day on Tuesday (May 26), as rescuers encountered difficult terrain and weather as they tried to reach the group whose condition remains unknown.The villagers entered the cave in Xaisomboun province on May 19, but heavy rain triggered flash flooding that blocked the exit, according to Lao and Thai rescue teams involved in the operation.The Lao organisation Rescue Volunteer for People, which is working closely with the local authorities, posted on its Facebook page that Tuesday’s operation plan includes exploring air shafts above the cave in hopes of identifying possible access points. and locating the trapped people.Rescuers from neighbouring Thailand also arrived at the site over the weekend to assist the operation.
