a re cave for a short visit. these are well—known caves, a popular tourist attraction, but it gets shut when the season becomes dangerous with rain making the caves inaccessible. but these boys and their coach had gone into those caves and then found themselves trapped inside and they we re themselves trapped inside and they were inside for nine days. when they we re were inside for nine days. when they were finally found, all of the boys and their coach, very thin, having had very little to survive with because they where in not expecting to be in for any longer than a very brief trip. the coach was 25 and she was said to be the weakest of the group when they were found because he had reportedly refused to eat any of the food that they had because he felt a great sense of responsibility for those boys, having gone into the

cave with them. he actually sent a letter to the families of the boys saying that he regretted what had happened and he was very sorry for what had happened, but the families have said that they absolutely do not hold him responsible and have forgiven him. when we saw pictures of the boys inside the cave, there was that memorable moment when two british divers came across them, it was the moment when we knew they were alive inside the cave because initially the effort that had been under way to try to ascertain where they were we re to try to ascertain where they were were being carried out on the basis of not knowing whether the boys would still be alive but i'm not sure if we can show you the pictures of that moment when the two british divers found the boys, all huddled together in the darkness and we

might be able to hear the sound on this as well because it was an amazing moment for the watching world to see as they called out to the boys, they kept their distance because the boys were very vulnerable, having been in there alone. you can see the darkness in the cave, they would have had no lights. they have had to wear sunglasses since coming out of the darkness but that moment when they we re darkness but that moment when they were found and the divers introduced themselves to the boys, they were immediately given metallic blankets to try to keep them warm. looking confused, dazed, very since but tha nkfully confused, dazed, very since but thankfully alive, and their families

remained outside the cave, waiting for news. they were able to exchange letters a nd for news. they were able to exchange letters and one of the boys celebrated his birthday inside the cave, he turned 17. there were m essa 9 es cave, he turned 17. there were messages passed between him and his pa rents messages passed between him and his parents as they celebrated that birthday but it's understood that the boys who have been brought out haven't been able to be reunited yet family members. they have seen each other through a glass screen but as the boys go to hospital, they have been very closely monitored. they have been given instant food and energy gels initially because they had to build up there strength but it's understood they have been able to eat very simple food since then that they have not been able to meet up that they have not been able to meet up with their parents directly because they are having all sorts of

tests to check for any signs of infection that they may have picked up. ithink infection that they may have picked up. i think we can now hearfrom our correspondent martin patience, who is at the hospital where the boys have been taken. news of the rescue is filtering through. just think back more than two weeks ago when these boys went missing, many people thought the worst and then just over a week ago they were found and now we're ina a week ago they were found and now we're in a position where thai officials are confirming that the 12 boys and their coach have all got out alive. it's a remarkable moment in the story that has captivated the world. in the last few minutes a couple of ambulances have gone into the hospital behind me, there are eight boys up there who were rescued

on sunday and monday, and we expect to see the four boys who have been rescued today and their coach to be brought to the hospital and reunited as an entire team. it's a remarkable moment and there will be jubilation not just here but moment and there will be jubilation notjust here but around the world. we have talked about football in the last few weeks but for many this has been the only football team they have been following. the 12 boys are out alive along with their coach and that has been confirmed. so often we talk about bad news stories but this was a good news story, earlier in the week a tight navy seals diver died and that gave us an indication of how complex this mission was. —— a tight navy seals diver. that is what makes the story is so

remarkable. these are some of the best cave divers in the world but they were operating under some of they were operating under some of the most difficult conditions imaginable day after day. they often swam, scuba dive, climbed, waited for hours before they reached the boys and then these 12 boys, many of whom had never swum before and they brought them all out alive, so it's a phenomenal achievement underscored by what you said about how dangerous it was and what we have seen to date is that there was no sense of complacency. these were expert divers who were methodical, they took their time and they have seen an unbelievable success. do we know much about the health of the boys? they haven't been able to see their pa rents they haven't been able to see their parents and there are concerns about

infections. yes, the eight boys in the hospital are in good health, in high spirits, asking for their favourite food. some of them may have to wait because they didn't eat much for two weeks, they are in medical quarantine in case they picked up some nasty infection while in the cave. at least four have seen their parents but through a window because there are concerns the boys could infect their parents or they could infect their parents or they could pick up an infection, but we expect them to be under medical observation for several more days. generally they are in good health and at the moment they will be overjoyed that although team—mates willjoin them on the eighth floor of the hospital behind me. and that

was our correspondent martin patience. we can speak now two andy evers. thank you forjoining us. extraordinary scenes and this hospital has gone much better than anyone dared hope. you have put that correctly. we were hoping and expecting that they would have this result. to be honest, we were not expecting 100% success, so 100% success is fantastic and i've got a bit emotional, so it's not only the boys who it has been affecting, it is also the rescuers, i'm not cave divers who are very good at cave diving but they are not

professionals, they don't dive for money and they don't rescue for money, they are explorers and they are normally diving to explore places where no humans have been before, so to perform a rescue is not something they do often and they are very at home under water, underground, and they are the best in the business. they have proved that, and it's a different thing, diving ina that, and it's a different thing, diving in a cave, and it's a very special ability and it comes from an awful lot of experience of doing it and getting the right mindset, so it's in the mind. i have said all through this that the important thing is to get the mind right, not to panic, with the people on the

surface controlling things, the divers and particularly the boys, and the boys have a lot going for them. they are young, fit, and sat there for nine days in complete darkness without falling apart and panicking, and that bodes well for them being able to breathe underwater in scuba gear that they had never seen or used without panicking and has been i this has panicking and has been by this has been so successful because these kids have been fantastic and the people rescuing them have been fantastic and we have had a wonderful outcome. it's better than any of us imagined, such a shame we lost the one tied diver. any of us imagined, such a shame we lost the one tied diverlj any of us imagined, such a shame we lost the one tied diver. i wasjust going to say that the death of that diver reminded us of the real perils

of this whole mission. absolutely, if such a specialised area and i knew what happened to the guy who died, it was simply a lack of experience in this sort of situation and it's a special experience, the navy seals to do that, it's just spending a lot of time underground underwater and that's what these cave divers have done and they have shown their professionalism and the results of those years of experience. at least one of them has been cave diving for a0 years. they have spent up to 36 hours underwater __ up have spent up to 36 hours underwater —— up to six hours underwater without surfacing and that's extraordinary. you know some of the

members of the rescue team and the people involved. how will they feel at this moment? chelated, they are delighted that this is complete. we all are. we are utterly delighted and you must remember i'm a very seasoned cave explorer, i have explored a lot of caves but i'm not a diver ora explored a lot of caves but i'm not a diver or a rescuer, so there's a rescue control centre in britain where they have kept an eye on this and sent out people to thailand to help with the rescue and there have been so well backed up by the thai authorities, both in facilitating transport from the uk to thailand, and then backing up the cave divers

who have been spearheading the diving and it's been a team effort between britain and other countries as well as the thai authorities, so it's all coming together very well and thank goodness, and full marks to the boys for keeping their cool underwater. there are not many people who could do that and their use has that advantage, they haven't had the life experience to perhaps have the imagination of what might have the imagination of what might have gone wrong. there are also physically small, which helps to get through small cases and for the big burly divers we have two handles, andi burly divers we have two handles, and i think those things have worked with the fact that these kids are probably so clued up and sewed together to not panic, that was the

secret and if you talk to anyone who has been in similar situations, put a mask on somebody and put them underwater and it's easy to lose your cool and not keep together.m isa your cool and not keep together.m is a remarkable story. andy evers, former chairman of the british caving association, thank you for joining us, and for anyonejust joining us, and for anyonejust joining us, and for anyonejust joining us, news from tied and that all 12 boys and their coach have now been rescued from the flooded cave underground system. all 13 people are now safely above ground. we will 110w are now safely above ground. we will nowjoin my colleague yalda hakim on bbc world news who was speaking to darrenjohnson. bbc world news who was speaking to darren johnson. this has been a difficult 18 days, especially for

those families waiting for news of whether their sons could be rescued and it's incredible. we watched three ambulances leaving this morning, the ninth, tenth and 11 is to be brought from the cave, and we understand the final boys and the coach have now been brought up and had theirfirst coach have now been brought up and had their first taste of sunlight for 18 days and they will soon be under way to hospital and there will be an incredible moment when they are reunited in hospital and can start recovering from this ordeal because this isn't quite over, the rescue has been successful but this will have had an impact on them. they have suffered mentally and physically so it will take time to rebuild their strength but what they fantastic outcome, the best possible

news. it's a mission to impress international rescue. the people involved can be proud that divers from around the world have brought their skills and expertise and worked for the good of those people who were stuck for more than two weeks in that cave deep under the mountains behind me. forten weeks in that cave deep under the mountains behind me. for ten days people thought they were dead or wouldn't make it out, they didn't know if help would ever reach them. and they were found they were in the most difficult circumstances, this looked like an impossible puzzle. there were different ways this rescue could have been done but the core group of 13 international divers who worked on this plant came up divers who worked on this plant came up with a carefully worked rescue, they prepared the boys from what they prepared the boys from what they would have to do, learning to dive for the first time. some of

them not used to swimming and then having to dive out off the narrow passengers, sometimes funnelling up or down, deep underground and deep underwater. it's perhaps the toughest cave dive in the world and it has been undertaken by boys who have never tried before. that is testa m e nt to have never tried before. that is testament to their strengths and says so much about the skill of the people who came here to rescue them. it looked like an impossible obstacle but they rose to the challenge and boy did they succeed. people will talk about the tham luang cave for a long time. we mustn't forget that one of the navy seal divers lost his life. it gave us seal divers lost his life. it gave usa seal divers lost his life. it gave us a sense seal divers lost his life. it gave us a sense of how difficult this mission was for them. that underlying things to people here.

there was a laois in eight days ago when the boys were found but then it became clear how complex the rescue would beat and that it would take time. the best option seemed to be to wait for the water level to receipt, which could have taken months. but they managed to get divers in and take supplies to the boys to keep them alive and it was a volunteer diver, an ex—thai navy officer who volunteered to come back to be part of the team that has worked on this rescue effort, so spare a thought for the family of saman gunan, who sacrificed his life. he was 38 and even with his experience in the thai navy, that's how dangerous this rescue was. there will be thoughts for his family. he

has little respect of this country and will have a funeral with full military honours, but there was a determined effort to make this outcome and they have achieved it. let's go back life to doctor sarita robinson. there is so muchjoy after so many weeks, we are now hearing that all 12 of those boys and their coach have made it out safely and can be reunited with theirfamilies. around the world everyone has had a great deal of emotional investment in this story. even here in preston, the amount of people who have asked me about how the boys will be doing and the concern shown, so i can only imagine what their parents have gone through. tell us about some of the

psychological impacts this could have on a long—term basis because you said they looked healthy and happy coming out but this kind of trauma will stay with them. it's about how they interpreted the situation, so when we think things are life threatening, that can be damaging toa are life threatening, that can be damaging to a psychological lake and if we do survive, that can lead to problems, things like post—traumatic stress disorder. in this suggesting, if the boys have not been as fearful or they framed it more as an adventure, potentially it might not be as damaging that it's down to the subjective interpretation. they have gone through quite challenging situation and we know that can

physically change your brain, so there was a study done a while ago in china after an earthquake and they stand people's brings a month after the earthquake and could see physical changes in structures such as the hippocampus, related to memory functioning, so it might be that these young people have physical changes are occurring in their brain as a result of the trauma which could then lead to problems but we should counter that with the fact that actually, maybe in six or eight weeks, they may have recovered enough to get on with everyday life and not be as affected as we might expect. we might expect from up or flashbacks as we might expect. we might expect from up orflashbacks in the as we might expect. we might expect from up or flashbacks in the first few weeks but we hope they would

fade away. we note in the boat 5% or 10% of people come post—traumatic stress disorder would set him and at that point we would offer interventions to help the body to recover and the brain to get back to normal. and that is probably why it was so important for these divers to keep these boys calm and for them not to panic. absolutely, we want to get them out safely and in emergency situations there is always the idea of people will panic and not do the right thing, that is not actually true, mostly people stay relatively calm and they might not do anything, they might not respond at all. the only difference here is that it was very enclosed, they had to go underwater and on their way out of

the cave and that is when we can see panic, when we are in those confined situations, highly stressful situations, highly stressful situations, so i think the divers have done an amazing job of being confident and reassuring and that has paid off. and the divers themselves would be impacted by this, physically and mentally. sometimes we talk about emergency service workers as developing secondary trauma, just dealing with the incident can affect them, even workers on the surface dealing with pa rents, workers on the surface dealing with parents, that can be emotionally demanding so a lot of self—care, a lot of peer—to—peer debriefing can help to get people back on an even keel with their mental health. doctor robinson, we appreciate you

sharing your thoughts here on the programme. now let's remember how each stage of the rescue mission was carried out. it started more than 2a hours ago, at 10am on sunday morning. 18 rescue divers supported by an england national team entered the cave to guide the boys to safely —— an international team. in total darkness to swipe at —— to divers swa m darkness to swipe at —— to divers swam with each child tethered to the driver in front. they followed a guide rope. the narrow west part is just over a0 centimetres wide. the boy was helped through by the diver in front. the children were then taken to hospital by ambulance. joining me is jeff

taken to hospital by ambulance. joining me isjeff crossley, a former cave diver and rescuer who has friends involved in the operation in thailand. you must be filled with joy, hearing this news. it's fantastic and i'm just waiting to hear that everyone is out, all the divers and the rescue workers as well. this has been an incredibly dangerous mission and a full time there was a doctor and three divers down there supporting the boys. there was a doctor and three divers down there supporting the boyslj think that was the right thing to have somebody there to keep the boys calm, let them know they were being supported and they would be getting out at one point. i have just read that set path they check, its difficult to process just how narrow some of these entrances were to get out of this cave. it's difficult,

most people's nightmare, underground in the dark, underwater and a confined space but that's the nature of the beast. were quite used to dies in places like that as cave divers but for a non—diver it would be very challenging. i hope the way the boys saw it, being young and adventurous, that was an extension to the adventure they work on. how important was it for the rescuers to keep these boys camp and make sure they don't panic in these narrow parts of the cave? keeping them calm is crucial because if an underwater rescue starts to go wrong due to somebody panicking, it can't impact on the other divers and bring them into it and the whole thing can

deteriorate into a dangerous situation, so i'm sure they will have had them in the water, where they were trapped, but not in the flood part of the cave, getting used to the breathing equipment, possibly sedated and then brought them through while maintaining a physical contact with them by the tether or by holding onto them and where visibility allowed, perhaps visual contact and those would reassure them. as someone who has been on rescue missions yourself, what kind of impacts can it have on a diver or a rescuer? you go through to the emotions. when you find the casualty, i have been on a couple of incidents, you are related but then realised they are not rescued, but then when you have a successful

outcome, these are the greatest moments in my life and i'm sure these will be the same for other people out there, i think they will look back on that as one of the most amazing things they have done. tell us more amazing things they have done. tell us more about the divers because you know some of them. i know some of the guys from the uk and they are the guys from the uk and they are the best you can possibly get, without a shadow of a doubt, they are world leaders in the field and in rescue, so i'm very proud of them. they have also got people that they know and trust, clearly it's been a huge international effort and we mustn't forget the contribution played by other support workers outside, them pump operators inside,

the carriers and porters but the thai navy seals have done an amazing job because it's not their remit, they are not cave divers but they put themselves through it, as was demonstrated sadly by the death of one of them. it gave us a sense of how dangerous this mission is when we have young boys who don't understand the breathing techniques and when a former thai navy seals loses his life, it gives you a sense of how dangerous the mission is for these boys. it can't be underestimated how difficult it is to get somebody out and the fact 13, it is an amazing achievement because it is an amazing achievement because it is an amazing achievement because it is difficult operation. thank you for joining it is difficult operation. thank you forjoining us on the programme. let's go live now and speak to mark

and patients at the hospital in chiang rai. darrenjohnson joins and patients at the hospital in chiang rai. darrenjohnsonjoins us from the caves in tham luang. no, i will go to martin, extraordinary that this has finally happened after days of an anxious wait. it is extraordinary. a couple of weeks ago as dan was saying, perhaps most people thought that the boys we re most people thought that the boys were dead but then they were found a little over a week ago and then there were other difficulties, dive tea m there were other difficulties, dive team is working out how they would actually bring these boys out alive along with their coach and that's terrible news underlining how dangerous the conditions were inside the cave. in the last half an hour orso, the cave. in the last half an hour or so, news has thought about that all 12 boys along with their coach have come out alive and outside this hospital, a small crowd has been gathering. that is a real sense of

jubilation. people dared to believe this might happen, well, it has happened after an extraordinary international effort. in terms of the hospital, we have seen two ambulances going. we're expecting three more and then on the eighth floor of the building behind me, i think there will be extraordinary scenes where we will see the whole tea m scenes where we will see the whole team back together. that team went into the cave as one. they will be up into the cave as one. they will be up on the eighth floor of the hospital, back as one. 12 players along with their coach, a remarkable moment which will bring jubilation here in thailand but for many people, following their story around the world, there has been a lot of talk about football teams during the world cup. for many people, this was the only football team they were following and everybody has come out alive. the world was watching this anxiously, waiting. 0ne alive. the world was watching this anxiously, waiting. one of the things that was really quick difficult about this was seeing the

boys first emerge on sunday, four of them, and we wanted to see them all together with their coach. so it was difficult to be jubilant together with their coach. so it was difficult to bejubilant in together with their coach. so it was difficult to be jubilant in those first few days. you've got to think of the families for whom the ordeal has gone on longer than for others. people were showing solidarity with the families who were waiting for their sons to be brought out. it undermines her tricky this rescue is and how carefully it has been executed, that nobody wanted to rush, that nobody wanted to get things wrong, make a false move, because there was so much risk involved in this. every option open to them had a lot of downsides. it looked impossible to find the right solution to bring a successful end to this rescue, but this international team of divers somehow worked together and put together the right rescue plan and their care and

dedication has seen it put into action in the quickest way it could be in terms of getting the boys out as quickly as possible but as safely as quickly as possible but as safely as possible. that was always the most important thing. they kept their eye on the weather with the possibility that the rain would increase the water level with the difficulty of the mountainous terrain and the difficult education, it's like a jungle on these hillsides, they are so steep and difficult to access to start drilling —— the difficult vegetation. they have taken their time teaching the boys as much as they could about the techniques of scuba diving, making them as comfortable as possible in the water and that's why they decided to mac days ago, we are ready, they're grady, let's give it a go —— two days ago they decided, we are ready, they are ready, let's give it a go. the outcome that everyone was

waiting for, the last four boys free and 25 eagle caught out as well —— their 25—year—old coach out as well. it is still one boy and the coach up there near the entrance to the cave. we think they willjust be having a medical check before being taken to hospital so they are still two people to leave this site and then the rescuers had to get out as well so the rescuers had to get out as well so this operation still isn't quite over. we have seen how much risk there was in conducting this rescue, evenjust there was in conducting this rescue, even just supplying the catherine meyer the boys —— supplying the cavern where the boys were. these are the volunteers who have supported the rescue team, keeping them fed, giving them equipped, giving them somewhere to rest and relax when needed.

cheering you can hear them celebrating because they have been waiting for the news that all these footballers we re the news that all these footballers were free. applause from the media and reporters who have been camped out there waiting for news because it has been such a phenomenal effort and effective rescue plan. it is a fantastic achievement of human endeavour, people bringing their skills together, fantastic teamwork because they had such difficult obstacles to overcome. it looked like nature kept laying down challenges to stop those boys being found, then to stop people reaching them, then to get those boys out. such intricate work but it has been so such intricate work but it has been so well planned and executed, the perfect rescue mission and if everyone else get out of the cave safely tonight, there will be a huge

celebration and the tham luang will go down in history as one of the great escapes in the world of cave diving. indies. we're still waiting for the doctor and divers to emerge from the cave. the parents will be anxiously waiting to be reunited. they have not been reunited with their children yet. we know that four of the boys have been reunited with their parents but that was through a glass window last night. the reason for that is the boys are still being kept in medical quarantine. the doctors are worried that they may have picked up some kind of infectious disease whilst inside a cave. they are in good health but are still weak and they're worried the parents could pass on infection to their boys. four of the boys have seen their opinions and we're expecting more of them to see their parents in the coming hours and days. the boys,

whilst in good health in good spirits, will remain under medical observation. they are weak and will need to build up their strength. they have undergone a battery of strength. the doctors wanted to be absolutely sure that the boys are all fine and absolutely sure that the boys are allfine and in absolutely sure that the boys are all fine and in good health before they leave the hospital behind me. we'll leave it there. we will come back to top you both later. thank you for the very latest from thailand. this capture the attention of the international society. now it is a success. there are big celebrations going on right now. this is what people have been praying for, for this to happen. it's incredible, it's this to happen. it's incredible, its extraordinary. mission

impossible has become possible. for ten days they have become trapped in that cave and we didn't know whether anyone would find them alive when the divers first went down, so to know that the boys were alive at first but then this difficult operation of trying to get them out. it looks like the god of luck is on their side. the first time they were found, it was the fact that one of the divers was running out of rope and he emerged from the water and he saw the boys looking at him. who would imagine, if he had not brought enough rope, he would have missed them completely and he would have found nothing. the media in thailand we re found nothing. the media in thailand were completely just found nothing. the media in thailand were completelyjust gripped by this story. notjust the local media by people all over the world. this is not just a people all over the world. this is notjust a local story, this is a big, global story. notjust a local story, this is a big, globalstory. everybody is praying for these kids. yes, it is

the world cup, but it's about life of 12 young men and their coach and the strength that kept them together and they survived this ordeal. as our correspondent dan was saying outside the cave, it was truly an international mission. people from all over the world were bringing their expertise, bringing their skills to try and get these boys out. it's extraordinary because it's very ha rd to out. it's extraordinary because it's very hard to see such international effort pulling together and doing everything they could for the survival of all these people. it's extraordinary and very good for this government because it's happened. well on one hand they are sort of losing their popularity locally, you have to remember that thailand has been under military rule for over four years now and it seems the

military is losing popularity, but now, because of this success, the job was led by the local governor and the government is looking and letting the expect from the job and they done so well. there has been a lot of speculation as to why the boys are being kept in quarantine. some are saying it is because of infection and health issues. 0thers we re infection and health issues. 0thers were questioning why thai authorities were able to visit the boys but the parents were not able to go into the room. it's not clear yet. the prime minister today said that he spoke to the boys in the hospital but i'm not sure whether he actually made physical contact with the boys whether he was just like the boys whether he was just like the parents, who had the glass barrier between them. it's not clear yet. extraordinary news out of thailand. it has truly gripped the

world. thank you for giving us the latest. let's go back to doctor robinson who can give us a sense of just the impact, the mental health impact that this could potentially have on the boys. tell us a little bit more about the psychological long—term impact this sort of trauma can have on these boys after being stuck in that cave for so long. we may see some negative impact in the immediate future. the boys may have flashbacks, nightmares, and maybe an avoidance of small, tight spaces which will trigger memories, but we would expect those two naturally resolve in the next few weeks and months —— two naturally resolve, and hopefully they will be functioning again. like any major life event, it will have a footprint on their brain but we don't necessarily have to see very negative outcomes. we can be optimistic in most of the cases that

they're going to make a good recovery. i'm not saying they're going to forget the experience, but actually it might not be as bad as we might perhaps imagine. humans are surprisingly resilient. some of the research i've been doing shows that people can show positive change as a result of trauma, it's a thing we call post—dramatic growth and idiomatic event can be a catalyst that can form plans for the future that can form plans for the future that people might not have had some people might start to change their life course, pick a new career, maybe decide that in the case of the john boys that they are going to push forward with their football career “— push forward with their football career —— in case of these young boys, or maybe they will become members of the thai navy, so post

traumatic growth as well as post—dramatic stress disorder and a more extreme outcomes but we will hope that they will be functioning again and can go back to school and do their homework and the normal things that teenagers have to put up with. thank you, doctor robinson. let's go to birmingham in the uk where chris boa rdman let's go to birmingham in the uk where chris boardman joins us, let's go to birmingham in the uk where chris boardmanjoins us, is safeguarding officer of the british caving association. all credit to these extraordinary divers who have completed what many were saying was mission impossible. this is an absolute extraordinary rescue. my admiration goes out to the thai navy seals and the cave divers from the us and uk who went out to thailand just as they did mexico in 200a to look for the children. really fantastic. we really saw that it was

an international effort. people bringing in their skills from right across the globe, coming together to try to rescue these boys. very much so. the navy seals were expert divers and obviously they can speak thai which none of the international rescu e rs thai which none of the international rescuers could do, but the international team was in cage diving which is different to diving itself. we should remember as well that these boys didn't necessarily know how to swim, they had never really dived before, so that added to the complexity of this whole mission. absolutely. also the really difficult time constraints with the expected monsoon this past weekend, i have the greatest admiration for

the thai authorities with their planning, i think they acted at exactly the right time to bring the children out. what was important was that we had some of the boys come out on sunday and then another rescue operation on monday. how important was it for them not to become complacent to treat each mission although it was the first one “— mission although it was the first one —— as though it was the first one? everyone has been on tenterhooks waiting for these last children to come out of the cave and their coach. it was not over till it was over. the risk was huge, it was necessary , was over. the risk was huge, it was necessary, it was the only way to get them out as we saw from the tragic death of the former thai navy sealjust a few days ago. this was very dangerous right from the start to the finish. some of the passages we re to the finish. some of the passages were just a0 centimetres wide. that's what it was especially difficult because you had to take

the air cylinders off your back and pushitin the air cylinders off your back and push it in front of you. if a bit of it, they were able to walk because they were able to drain some of the cave using pumps. most of the time they were in the water, the rescue divers would have been face—to—face but through that tight constriction of a0 centimetres, that would not have been possible and that's when the children needed the greatest courage. chris boardman, thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. let's go to a regional coordinator for the national underwater cave rescue and recovery organisation. he has conducted five successful underwater cave has conducted five successful underwater cave rescues has conducted five successful underwater cave rescues and joins me now from florida. thank you for joining us. this is an extraordinary

mission that is now —— has now proven to be successful. good morning, thanks for having me. i was overjoyed when we heard the news this morning that the remaining boys and their coach work were out. they we re and their coach work were out. they were up against insurmountable odds. they had so many restrictions, ups and downs, long treks through treacherous conditions. it shows how tough these young men are. they're boys but they are really now young men. its extruded to think some of them were as young as 11 and they had never swam before —— it is extraordinary to think. if people

we re extraordinary to think. if people were betting, i don't think they would have bet this outcome —— bet on this outcome, there are so many things like stress which leads to panic. it's just remarkable. things like stress which leads to panic. it'sjust remarkable. it shows how professional and how good those rescuers are, the thai navy and divers from all over the world thatjoins to be able to keep them calm enough to not panic that was the biggest problem in my opinion in these horrific restrictions and zero visibility sections of underwater to stop them from panicking and potentially harming themselves. you have conducted five of these similar rescue operations in caves yourself. tell us about some of the challenges involved in that. well, just finding

them. people that go into caves who actually divers, most of them have good visibility and you can see and you can think, if they were right over there, that would be nothing for you to find them. in zero visibility, if somebody is two inches past your fingertips, visibility, if somebody is two inches past yourfingertips, they're gone, it makers of two miles —— it might as well be two miles. you have to do the setting with your hands, so just to do the setting with your hands, sojust finding them to do the setting with your hands, so just finding them was incredible, so just finding them was incredible, so my hats off to the british divers. the flaw was extremely high and that is what kept stopping the effort of the thai navy the first couple of days. the extreme flow and a lot of people don't understand that, how violent that water flow can be. for the british divers to go in there and find them was just remarkable. ed, thank you so much

for joining remarkable. ed, thank you so much forjoining us on the programme. let's talked to mr annan from our thai service. give us a sense of the weather conditions at this time. thailand is in the middle of monsoon season. it starts from around the end of may to the end of september. the rain in the uk is nothing compared to what we have in tropical weather so you have it up in the north in mountainous areas so you have water coming down from the top of the hill, what are just everywhere and the governor of the other day at a press conference gave us other day at a press conference gave usa other day at a press conference gave us a sense other day at a press conference gave us a sense of how much water it was. he was saying that they tried to stop the water pumping forjust 12 minutes and the water level in the cave rose by ten centimetres. that was during the dry days when the

rain had stopped. that's why they had to speed up the operation to race against the flow of water and it seems that luck was on their side. everybody was looking to disguise. the rain could have come at any point on any day. there was even talk in the early stages when they first found the boys that they would be in that cave for four months. that was the worst case scenario because at the time the water level was quite high. they we re water level was quite high. they were saying that the warehouse used for storage of equipment, they could stock up the water supplies for up to four mac months, —— the food supply forfour to four mac months, —— the food supply for four months. luck was on their side, they pumped out as much water and their side, they pumped out as much waterand drain as their side, they pumped out as much water and drain as they could and

they managed the water quite well so it is dry enough for the rescuers to get in and help the boys out. extraordinary. mr wong—anan, thank you for giving us some information about the weather conditions in thailand and the challenges faced. let's go back to ed sorensen from the international cave rescue and recovery organisation. we have to remember, as you were saying earlier, that one former thai navy seals earlier, that one former thai navy s ea ls lost earlier, that one former thai navy seals lost his life. while these boys made it out alive, this mission was incredibly conjugated and delicate. it really was and that the risk -- delicate. it really was and that the risk —— that is the risk that we as rescu e rs risk —— that is the risk that we as rescuers faced every day. there is another story going on in france right now with a good friend of mine passed away while cave diving is one

of the rescuers lost his life going to get him. these are the kind of things that we face. every we go in ona things that we face. every we go in on a rescue body recovery, panic divers will take you outjust like that. it's just one of the risks that. it's just one of the risks that we take and it shows how professional the team on site are. to get them out against all odds. these boys don't know how to swim, that's a sure sign that somebody is going to panic and how those boys put their lives in these rescuers' hands and said, i trust you to get me out of here, i remember saying that tattoo—mac of my victims that had found a small air pocket —— i remember saying that to two of my victims. i said, remember saying that to two of my victims. isaid, you have remember saying that to two of my victims. i said, you have to stay calm, i have to keep you can. the

divers would not only have been thinking about it been —— thinking about keeping themselves and the boys safe, but reassuring them every step of the way that they would make it out of there. that's the thing, we are very verbal people, so the two that i could talk to who i rescued, i said, just hold on to me, i'm going to get you out of here, i will not leave you. you've got to have them trust you. you have to have them trust you. you have to have them trust you. you have to have them stay calm and you've got to reiterate and work like you got the situation under control, and they have to trust you. and you have to trust that they're not going to panic and take you out with them, so these rescuers did an incrediblejob getting these boys out. it's just remarkable, the resilience of these young men. ed sorensen, thank you so

much forjoining us. we havejust said in the last hour or so, we got the extraordinary news that that dramatic cave rescue operation had come to an end after 12 young footballers and their coach had been rescued. you are looking at the images of those divers trekking underwater, diving suit is very narrow passages in that cave to try and get to the boys. the boys were in that cave for ten days before they were found alive and then there was the difficult task of trying to figure out how to get these boys out alive and we have just learned in the last hour that that dramatic cave rescu e the last hour that that dramatic cave rescue mission was 12 young footballers and their coach has now been completed. they‘ re footballers and their coach has now been completed. they're safely being taken to the hospital to be reunited with theirfamilies. taken to the hospital to be reunited with their families. we will have

much more coming up in the next edition of impact on bbc news. high pressure is still with us for the rest of the week but we will see su btle the rest of the week but we will see subtle changes. it has been a good day for many. this cold fronts that southward and introduces fresh air. if you weather fronts across northern part of scotland will bring thicker cloud outbreaks of rain and we will start to see substantial rain pushing into northern ireland, west of scotland, some useful rain by the end of the night as we head into tomorrow. elsewhere, is going to be largely dry except for the odd shower and towns and city temperatures at a bit fresher in the countryside. many places will be dry tomorrow thanks to high pressure but they will be some showers and longer spells of rain. most of the show will be across northern and western scotla nd will be across northern and western scotland in two parts of northern

ireland. some very useful rain to help the very dry conditions. much of england and wales, the job developing in the afternoon. it should be a dry one with some good, sunny spells. temperatures will creep up a little bit higher, so 25, maybe 26 will be the high. a good afternoon for wimbledon with temperatures reaching 23, 20 four celsius, variable cloud but also sunny spells and the winds will be light, too. it is thursday, high pressure still with us but we will continue to have that theme of sunny spells and also a feel showers. some of them to be quite heavy across western parts of britain with the odd thunderstorm developing into the afternoon. many places will stay dry, the showers will be hit and miss and temperatures are starting to creep up, perhaps 2627 celsius. further north, maybe a degree or so

warmer on wednesday but still fairly fresh with some cloud around. in friday, thunderstorm developing, there could be the odd heavy one with the local downpour. some areas staying dry altogether. it will be warmer still on friday, temperature is creeping up across much of england and wales,. for many of us into the weekend, it looks fine with hot sunshine across southern areas and was cloudy with rain for scotla nd and was cloudy with rain for scotland and northern ireland. hello. you're watching afternoon live. i'm simon mccoy live at westminster. today at 2... they're out. all 12 boys and their football coach have been rescued from the cave in thailand after more than a fortnight underground. we'll have the latest from the scene. business as usual. theresa may's new look cabinet meets for the first time, as the prime minister

calls for party unity. a flypast over buckingham palace of up to 100 aircraft to mark the centenary of the creation of the raf. what's happening with the weather. cool and fresh today that is set to warm up again in places during the week.