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  "path": "/partner/people-trapped-laos-cave-alive",
  "publishedAt": "2026-05-27T12:48:28.000Z",
  "site": "https://nukta.com",
  "textContent": "\n\n\n\nFive of seven people trapped in a flooded cave for a week in Laos were found alive on Wednesday, Laotian and Thai rescuers confirmed. The villagers entered the cave in central Xaysomboun province, about 125 kilometres northeast of the capital Vientiane, on May 20. They were searching for gold when heavy rain triggered flash flooding and blocked their exit.\n\n#### How many people were found alive in the Laos cave?\n\nFive of the seven trapped villagers were found alive and confirmed safe on Wednesday, May 27. Two people remain unaccounted for, with search operations continuing. Both a Laotian volunteer rescue group and Thai rescuer Kengkach Bangkawong confirmed the discovery independently through social media posts, as did Lao state media.\n\n#### What conditions did rescuers face inside the flooded cave?\n\nFinnish specialist rescue diver Mikko Paasi described the operation as a race against time earlier on Wednesday. Rescuers had to navigate hundreds of meters of narrow restrictions, floodwaters, collapse hazards, and air potentially contaminated with dangerous gases. The seven villagers were believed to be trapped in a terminal chamber around 300 meters from the cave's exit.\n\nPaasi said the group had entered the cave with enough supplies to remain underground for several days. The cave system, located in a remote area, extends deep underground through multiple levels and narrow passages. Authorities and villagers worked to pump out water throughout the week before rescuers could reach the group.\n\nBy Wednesday morning, water levels had dropped considerably, allowing rescue teams to push further inside. Local officials and villagers gathered outside the cave before operations resumed to perform a traditional spiritual ceremony. They offered chickens and rice alcohol to sacred spirits believed to protect the mountain and those working to save lives inside it.\n\n#### Is this connected to the 2018 Thailand cave rescue?\n\nMikko Paasi was one of the divers who helped retrieve the \"Wild Boars\" youth football team from the Tham Luang cave complex in northern Thailand in 2018. That team spent nearly three weeks trapped by flash floods before a dramatic international rescue operation brought them out. Two Thai specialists who also participated in the 2018 rescue joined Paasi at the Laos cave on Monday.",
  "title": "5 of 7 people trapped in Laos cave found alive, rescuers say"
}