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cave within hours. >> look at this, we've got new pictures in to cnn. an ambulance here leaving the cave with lights flashing. we do not know if there is one of these boys who is on board, but we know that after, if one comes out soon will be put into an ambulance and then flown to a hospital. we're told this could be a three-day mission to complete. and they truly are racing the weather now because heavy rains have started there. the monsoon downpours are expected to intensify over the next several days to a week. let's go to cnn's david mckenzie. he is live there near the site, that cave in thailand. dave, we saw the ambulance again. we don't know who, if anyone, are on board that ambulance, but we know they'll be boarding a helicopter. have you seen or are you even in a position where you see those helicopters take off to head to the hospital, if that's what's happening right now?

>> reporter: victor, when the victims go, they will be moving off the mountain to the hospital in chiang rai where they are waiting for any of the boys taken out of that cave. and there will be a sense that even if the first one or the second one get out, it will be a long process to make sure that all of those boys are rescued from the cave. they will have to do it one by one, an international team that is joined and led by the thai navy, but to bring them safely through that narrow passage. if they get out, the key question will be what sort of state are they in? are they in good health? are they able to walk out of the cave entrance and greet their parents who are agonizingly waiting for them. no official word yet, but there is a sense of urgency at this moment, at this hour. it's kind of the time, we believe, perhaps those first

boys will come out, but it's too early to tell yet, and we'll be following it closely. >> david, wii talked about this setup here and how they've been working through different processes to get those boys out, and it was sort of a relay method that you were talking about. walk us through that. how do we believe they are working to get the boys out? we're nine hours into this mission now. >> well, that's right, and the thai navy source describing it this way, that the international divers led by the two british divers who originally found those young boys, which was such an extraordinary event in itself, will be joined by thai navy s.e.a.l.s. then because of those narrow

pass sa pa passageways, they will have to push them, cajole them to the entrance. then they will hand over those boys to a successful relay team, as it were, that will bring them on stretchers all the way to the entrance. then they will hand them to medical personnel who have been trained, of course, and have been practicing just how to do this, and then on to the hospital. this is all a massive operation with key specialists involved. as one diver said to me, it's the best of the best from the u.s. and elsewhere who are getting involved to try to pull this off. >> david, do we know if, once they get to a boy in this chamber where they've been held and they start this process, that it will not stop until the boy is out, or will there be rest periods, checkpoints there where they check, okay, you made it through the diving portion and now he's going to take a couple minutes, maybe an hour, to rest before we go through that long mile or more walk to the entrance of the cave?

>> reporter: i think it depends on how they want to do it, but i do feel they want to get those boys out quickly. the one key issue here, though, victor, is that difficult diving section of this journey. they'll have to do one by one, and they'll have to make sure that the boy is safe in the air of the chamber 3 before they even attempt the next rescue, i would believe. if anything goes wrong, and it's horrible to say this, but you might jam up that passageway while you're dealing with this situation. so it's a very arduous process with these divers who have never tried this before. victor and diane? >> we're looking at what appears to be some increased activity outside the cave there on the ground. you've also spoken with family and been able to talk to those who have been waiting for 15 days now. but, i mean, they weren't even

found by those divers until july 2nd. so this is something that, you know, these families have expressed to you how they've been feeling during this. >> reporter: well, all through the last few days, we've been in the communities talking to the family members, the aunts, uncles, fathers, grandmothers, all waiting, all praying for their loved ones to come home. and the parents themselves will be on that mountainside as the light is fading here in thailand, waiting, and they should be the first ones to greet those young boys. officials have been very careful to say that they want the parents to find out first when their boys have been rescued as that is the privilege for them that have been waiting. and then they will get the word out to the rest of us. there is also a sense that the waiting will be agonizing because those first parents will

hopefully get a sense of -- they'll get the joy that they are hoping for, but then the others will need to wait to see. and there are some of those boys whose health have deteriorated in recent days according to doctors' assessments, and most likely the coach will be the final one to be brought out. these touching letters that have been going back and forth in thai written on scraps of paper, the parents are saying, this is not your fault. this is a freak accident and you shouldn't feel bad about this. and the coach himself apologizing for what these boys have gone through. victor, diane? >> pictures on the screen near the site of that cave. this has been going on now for more than two weeks. the boys are between 11 and 16. we're told that the decision about who would come out first was left to the boys. a doctor will consult on their health and who was the strongest to potentially make that first

journey, but the boys themselves would have to turn to each other and decide who would be the first to put on that face mask, to go through the hours of diving, to go more than a mile then to try to get out of this cave. and, of course, hundreds of people are there to support an entire country. they are there praying and the world is watching now as the thai official says the first boy could come out today. david mckenzie there, thank you so much for kbrour repoyour rep. we'll get back to you in just a moment. >> you saw the ambulance. we can tell you medical teams are waiting outside the cave. they are ready to take action as soon as the first boys emerge. they are the first step in what is a massive medical operation. after 15 days underground, look, these boys are weak. and a team of doctors, nurses and paramedics are going to assess each one before they're even flown to the hospital. they have to make sure they have

the strength, sort of see and assess what's going on with them. outside the hospital a dozen dads are waiting for each of the boys and their coach. joining us now by the phone is dr. daria long gillespie. daria, can you explain to us what kind of medical concerns you would have for these boys after being in this cave for 15 days in those conditions? >> yes, absolutely, and i know we are all waiting with baited breath to hear what happens with these boys. one of the main concerns is oxygen right now. they've been in an area where oxygen levels are low. when you're in a diving situation, oxygen is something you worry about. that's something they'll be checking out, checking their oxygen levels, checking their breathing. we're also worried about dehydration and mal nnourishmen so they'll be checking that as

well. >> there is also psychological concerns. how do you convince an 11-year-old boy, we're going to do this. we have five hours together and we're going to get you out of this cave. >> just as far as the physical concerns we're worried about. i scuba dive. i'm scared to go through a small little tunnel let alone diving for five hours. it's scary to experience with these divers. all they can do is give these boys a whole lot of hope, because that's what they need in order to get through that. >> obviously we worry about the oxygen, but is emotional damage, emotional recovery sort of the biggest long-term thing we're looking at here? i know it takes a while to recover before they were dealing with the thought of starvation before they were found and located and didn't have the energy gel they've been eating, but what are we talking with long-term effects here, if that's possible?

>> you are exactly right. we'll be worried about what was their mental state when they were in the cave? especially when they had no idea that rescuers were going to be coming, so it's going to really depend on what was their relationship when they were in the cave? i spoke when i was on last about the chilean miners. they were very supportive of each other. that's going to be extremely important when they're outside. what was their hope? and it will be weeks and months before we can really see what the long-term effect is on these young boys. >> we have the 12 boys and the coach who are being rescued, but navy divers and five thai navy s.e.a.l.s being voinvolved. this is after a diver died after delivering supplies to them in the cave. talk about the rescuers. >> that is always the concern. the rescuer doesn't want to be the person who has to be

rescued. but as this one case with a thai navy s.e.a.l. showed, diving is very dangerous. it can be anything from lack of oxygen to embolus, something blocking their bloodstream, all of these things can cause death in diving. and especially when you have a long five-hour dive, that's going to be something everyone is concerned about. >> some of the letters that went from the kids to their parents, it sort of struck me -- it reestablished how young they were, talking about things like what they wanted to eat when they left. is it possible that due to their age that this wasn't something that they really recognized, just the gravity of their situation? >> i've said before that in many ways their younger age is somewhat of a blessing. because not only are they, as you mentioned, mentally they probably don't understand, they likely don't understand the degree of risk undertaken. i'm sure they haven't been told about the thai navy s.e.a.l. and

i hope they do not find out, any of them, until they are way out of that cave. but physically as well, they are in the prime of their health. so if anybody can endure these moments of tension, lower oxygen and other physical challenges, it's going to be young teenage boys. >> dr. daria gillespie, thank you so much for helping us understand the physical, psychological, emotional challenges of the boys, their doe coach and of their rescuers. >> meanwhile, rescue teams, of course, as we've said all morning, they are up against the weather. not just the difficult caves, but the heavy rains that have already begun. monsoon-level rains expected to intensify over the next week. cnn analyst alvin chinchar has been keeping us updated on a situation that only looks worse because of rain. >> we keep seeing that moisture come back and it's only going to be more frequent in the next

couple days. here is the map. this is thailand. notice all of these colors coming in, the reds and oranges indicating the moisture returning to this area. at times it's getting torrential downpours. you can see that poor visibility, and coming down from a lot of the very heavy rain. rain is going to stay in the forecast. not just the rest of the day sunday, but also monday and tuesday looking at 80 to 90% chances of rain. and really it extends beyond that. the next five to seven days, truly. but when you look at the extended forecast, rain is expected every single day. but it's next week when we finally start to see a jump in the total number of precipitation that would be coming back in. that's going to be a concern, because as of right now, they are still able to pump more water going out than is coming in. but as those rain amounts go up, that may change. so, again, we are dealing with that very narrow window here in which they need to get those boys out. in addition to the water going into the cave, obviously

blocking pathways for them to get to the boys, you also have the other concern: oxygen. because that water, it fills those passageways, it also blocks the air supply. because normally air would flow freely through some of those passages, but now it cannot because those passages are now blocked by the water. the latest number we have is 15%. that's the oxygen level they're dealing with inside that cave. 21, just for rempference, is th normal range. they don't want it to get too much lower than it is, because even at 15%, you're dealing with impaired coordination. then your perception, your judgment, and at some point, less than 8%, it can become fatal. so diane, the key thing here is they need to get those boys out safely but in a timely fashion before the water levels get too low and the water inside gets too high. >> an impaired coordination at 15% is obviously the last thing, the last challenge you want

right now. we've got these pictures from just outside. this is a road that leads to that cave, and you see the flashing lights there. another ambulance headed near there. someone can tell me if this is the road headed up to that entrance of the cave. it is. thank you very much. so this is the second time now we've seen an ambulance near that site. of course, we are waiting for the latest news from the governor who has been giving most of the information about the condition of the boys and progress of the mission. >> we are, again, a little more than nine hours into this mission. stay with us. we are going to bring you the latest from thailand just after this break. (♪) i'm a four-year-old ring bearer with a bad habit of swallowing stuff. still won't eat my broccoli, though. and if you don't have the right overage,

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. back to chiang rai here, and this is the road that leads to the entrance of that cave, and you see here an ambulance that's headed, lights flashing, to get closer to that cave. now, we do not have confirmation about the progress of the mission to rescue those 12 boys and their coach, but we're into almost the night of the half hour point of this, as we're told by the governor of chiang

rai. it started 10:00 p.m. last night. >> yes, so essentially, just in case, we've got 12 boys inside there and their coach, a 25-year-old soccer coach. the boys range in age from 11 to 16 years old. they have been in that cave since june 23rd. on july 2nd, a pair of british divers actually located them. they are about half a mile below the surface when they were able to, and that has added to that complex rescue mission, trying to get into these narrow passages. cnn's david mckenzie is live at that cave site there. a lot of hurry up and wait as well. what's the latest from where you are? >> reporter: well, the latest is this operation is ongoing, and those ambulances suggest a lot of movement and possibly significant developments in the story. but we wanted to get that information ironclad before we

bring it to you, because so much is at stake here. there is the following going to happen in the coming hours. in fact, if some of the boys have been removed, then it would be ahead of schedule. but they will be taken out of that cave tended to by medics which the governor says has been training for days to get this exactly right, and then taken by either road or helicopter to the nearby hospital where a team of doctors and other personnel are waiting to tend to them. once and if the first boys get out of that cave where they've been stuck for all of these days, there will still be an agonizing wait that could take days, according to officials here, for the rest of them to be free. and, you know, time and again i've spoken to specialist divers on the scene here who have said that this is something that has never been undertaken before. that incredibly arduous trip for the young boys and their coach

to be taken through tight passages, and then to get them out one by one because of the nature of the technical diving that is being undertaken, and out to their families. it's really captured the world's imagination, and it's ultimately the parents that are wanting to know just if they're safe. >> the world's imagination, yes, but you appropriately say there is so much at stake. remind us of what the classmates of these boys have been doing since they've been in that cave. there have been monks who have been praying outside the cave. give us an idea of how the entire country has been focused on what's happening there. >> reporter: well, that's right, the country and the world and communities and schools that we visited over the past few days and before, they've been setting up shrines to the boys, they've been giving buddhist prayers.

they've been making origami birds. one counselor asked the kids to make 100 origami birds. a young friend of one of the boys said the first thing they'll want to do is play soccer. the boys, if they get out, will in time be invited to the soccer world cup, say officials. they've had messages from celebrities and soccer stars from the king of thailand, revered figure here in the country, and it really has pulled this community, this border community, together. victor, diane? >> and david, their friends, their community, the world watching, but those parents, you've spoken to those parents. you've been able to sort of absorb the emotion that they have been talking to you about not knowing and then hoping and waiting and holding vigil that their children will come out of these caves. what are the parents doing at

this point? do they have them waiting in a specific area just in case? >> reporter: they have been waiting for a long time, kept separate from the press most of the time on the area of the mountain that is now shrouded in darkness behind me. they were kept waiting and they were able to get messages. it just describes how difficult this entire operation has been, that they fail to even get a phone line to the kids to speak directly with them. but they were able to share these handwritten notes in thai on scraps of paper. the boys jointly saying, you know, don't give us too much homework when we get out, and please, we want all types of food, and this area famous for its excellent food. and the parents writing back, and most touchingly, perhaps, telling the coach, you know, this is not your fault. you shouldn't feel responsible, and we are glad that you have kept those boys calm through all those days of darkness and no food before the rescuers managed to reach them.

>> david mckenzie, thank you so much. please stay close because we're going to be checking back in with you as information comes in. a cave expert and national coordinator for the cave rescue commission spoke to cnn a short time ago. >> here's what he said about his experience given the conditions, and what we've all talked about today is how difficult this rescue mission is. >> the water level being lower makes the diving and the extrication a little safer, but that's a rell ative safety and still a little dangerous. before we did not know if leaving them in place would be feasible. we're finding it's a less than desirable option based on the logistics and the fact that the air is getting stale and the oxygen levels are dropping and the carbon dioxide levels are

rising. so it's the lesser of evils. and i've said many times, there were no easy choices or good choices. i trust that the divers who are working with the kids and training them have made the decision that it is at least worth the attempt to try. i know several of the people who are there are just top notch and they're very good at what they do, and if anybody could bring them through, it would be those people. when i first found that they were alive, i was, of course, glad they were alive. that's certainly excellent news. but as someone who has done many cave rescues, i knew the worst and hardest part of it actually had started to begin, because now it increased the pressure and increased the timeline that they had to deal with. i'm glad they did not have to deal with a body recovery or body recoveries, but if they had to do that, the time and pressure on the rescuers would have been much different. now that we are trying to get them out alive, it's a

hundredfold worse. they're not going to bring them out in the same way they might come out in that they'll just continue to go. they'll start from where the boys are. they'll bring them out in stages and they'll have to allow them to rest at various places. they'll have to actually transport them through some of the places. you have to remember these boys are still very, very weak from their ordeal. you do not recover from starvation, and they had nine or ten days of starvation, you don't recover from that in a few days. it's many weeks to months before you have significant percentage of your original strength back. so you can't just take these boys out in the five or six hours it might take for highly skilled and highly trained person to do. the first one that gets out will be kind of a test of of ththis e what kind of difficulties they'll face. if they get the first one out alive, the odds are better for the following ones simply from the fact they've learned what's going on with that, they have a

better idea of what they're dealing with. there's still no guarantee. i'm very hopeful that they get them all out alive, but i'm also prepared for some bad news for this. >> he was prepared for bad news, but if you look at the bottom of your screen there, some good news. a member of the rescue team stationed at the entrance of the cave witnessed three boise vys waited out of that cave. it's dark there, but we see helicopter blades. ambulances, we see that. we know that the boys, once taken out of the cave, will be loaded onto the helicopter and flown 30 miles to a hospital and that's where they will be checked out. >> and this is after the medical team stationed at the mouth of the cave there, they have basically this setup to where doctors can examine them immediately to discern whether or not they can withstand that helicopter ride. so whether or not those three

boys coming out, it does look like this helicopter there getting ready potentially to take off from this video. the medical team, then, would have -- if it's going the way it was designed would have already been able to examine the child that was put in there. now we are being told that our david mckenzie is back with us now from near the cave. and david, this is the best news, that at least three of those parents could have hoped for at this point from the eyewitness saying that three of them have emerged from the cave, seeing those ambulances and helicopter now, david. >> reporter: well, that's right. three of those boys, we believe, according to this eyewitness who is a member of the overall rescue team stationed at the entrance saw them emerge from the cave. so that is excellent news. we don't know the state of health that they are in, and it's even ahead of schedule compared to what the authorities

had believed earlier today, but it means that there is a major -- not glimmer of hope, a ray of hope for those parents, for at least three sets of parents most likely, that the boys have possibly started coming out. we know they started coming out, according to this eyewitness. >> david, when you consider that the governor said at the start of this mission that it could take about three days, and what we know about the forecast, when we realize that the rain would start soon -- it actually had started earlier today -- three days seemed like too long to get all of these boys out, if it indeed took that long. >> reporter: well, it's already been an agonizing wait. if they can get them out quicker, i am sure they will do it. but i kind of just want to pause for a second and just think about this moment. because you've had these british divers going with these thai navy specialists into some of the most hazardous water you can

imagine. according to our eyewitness, they've successfully managed to get three of these boys out of that cave system. of course, we have to wait to see the state of health that those boys are in. but at this stage, even contemplating the fact that they can successfully pull this extraordinary rescue operation off, at least at this stage, is pretty amazing. and the best of the best are here, and they could be giving that incredible news to their parents right now. the boys, as they exit the cave, will be sent either by road or by helicopter, we believe, to a nearby hospital in chiang rai where they will be getting medical attention. and this is just a huge test of human ingenuity and human spirit. as you've been reporting, victor and diane, the boys had to decide for themselves who would go first, who would submerge into those dark waters and go

through that dark chamber to an uncertain future. they've been there for more than two weeks sustained on very basic food and water, kept their spirits up by their coach and rescuers that they had to move because oxygen levels are so low. three are out. the rest of them, they want to get all of them out, of course, and they will be working tirelessly to do that. >> david, when you were speaking there, we were seeing video of what appeared to be ambulances. they're arriving at that hospital, at least taking the moment in on how flawlessly it appears at this point to have unfolded, finishing up with these first boys that are out. again, we do not know the condition of these three boys that the rescue team members saw emerge from this cave. but the fact they have now arrived -- that we've seen something at this hospital, we've seen helicopters leaving, it does appear that the plan has

gone into motion. it was quicker than we were expecting. >> if you think about where they started, 13 people, 12 of them boys 11 to 16 with a 25-year-old coach in a cave, in the dark for most of the past period with just the food and water they took in with them, and then found by these two british divers. and then this massive international plan to rescue them began. and how do you get these boys, some of whom cannot swim, who never have been in the water this deep, right? we're talking dozens of feet deep. they're not experienced divers. to get them out of this cave, and to do it ahead of schedule, three boys evacuated. it is miraculous. >> victor, i have for you -- the ap is reporting right now that four boys will walk out of the

cave soon. i'm reading at this point four boys have reached the rescue base camp inside the complex. they are going to walk out. the country's defense ministry spokesman told ap that four boys have reached chamber 3 and they will walk out of the cave shortly. this is where the rescue workers have set up their base. we're hearing now four boys to walk out of that cave soon. again, i just cannot comprehend what's happening at this point. >> what we were told is they would be carried out on stretchers. to have them come out alive is amazing. but to now see them walk out is phenomenal. >> we have done nothing but illustrate basically how the odds were so stacked against all of them, how difficult this mission is, the fact that a retired navy s.e.a.l. from the thai navy died trying to sort of do these dry runs and bring supplies to them, he ran out of oxygen. the stakes could not be higher.

it's such a cliche, but it was so difficult for them to get through these tiny areas, some areas only 15 inches, having to squeeze through, having to remove tanks. they've done nothing but pump out water, this international effort from people all over the world. as one of the divers said, the best of the best coming together and working to get these boys out of there. to hear that four boys may walk out of the cave is -- >> we do know that these four boys, according to the afp, will be walking out of this cave. we do not know the full picture of their health. they will be headed to the hospital. our matt rivers is there. we'll go live to that hospital after a quick break. stay with us. sometimes a day at the ballpark is more than just a day at the ballpark. [park announcer] all military members stand and be recognized. sometimes fans cheer for those who wear a different uniform.

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♪ ♪ ♪ raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens ♪ ♪ bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens ♪ ♪ brown paper packages tied up with strings ♪ ♪ these are a few of my favorite things ♪ ♪ ♪ but, with more exercise and a change in diet, it can be reversed. i've tried exercising. it just makes me hungry. for bacon.

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live pictures here. this is near the cave where afp is reporting that four boys are going to soon walk out of this cave. there are sources, the defense minister spokesman, told by the afp. these are 12 boys and a coach that have been trapped inside this cave. moments ago we were reported by a witness that there were three boys that were evacuated from that cave. what we do not know is if those three are part of the four. let's be clear there. i don't want anyone putting together that seven boys have come out. we know that four boys, according to the afp, are expected to walk out of this cave soon. we have live pictures now of the hospital about 35 miles away. we know these boys are going to be sent there for the obvious medical follow-up that's necessary. they've been in this cave in the dark for 15 days.

>> we actually have our david mckenzie who has been following this story for days with us now all morning long bringing us those updates. david joining us from thailand near that cave. and david, just run through with us what's going on right now. >> reporter: what's going on is this extraordinary rescue operation which is still very much in progress. this could take hours yet. though there is, of course, this euphoria at the news from our eyewitness that three boys were taken out, we don't yet know what sort of health state they are in, also that news that you described that four, according to afp from an official source, either the same or different boys also out, or will be out soon. but that's truly significant, however, it's worth remembering the agonizing wait for the parents. a few days ago they said the strongest boys would likely make the attempt first. so the risk levels, if they

stick with that plan that was mandated by the doctors' assessment, that, you know, the weaker boys will come later. because not through any kind of harshness, they had to test whether they can even complete this extraordinary journey, and the best way to do that is with the strongest kids. it's amazing that any of them have the physical strength and the wherewithall to get out of that cave system given this horrifying experience that they've gone through. >> so, obviously, the most sensitive of the rescues are still to come. not to suggest that any of this has been easy, but when we know that the strongest boys were coming out first, the weakest boys would be left for the latter part of the mission, that suggests that there's still a lot of work to do. >> exactly. >> talk about, if you would, the oxygen levels. because with these increased numbers of people who are coming into this chamber where the boys

and their coach have been held, that would of course use more oxygen. and the amount is depleting and has been for some time now. >> reporter: well, that's right. if the oxygen levels, victor, drop below certain levels, you could have symptoms of hypoxia and similar ailments. almost like climbing a very high mountain. you have that thin air, lack of oxygen. it causes very bad health effects in the short and long term. that's one of the reason they removed a lot of those rescue workers from the area and they made this desperate effort to get oxygen into that cavern. even that thai former navy rescue diver who died, his role was to get oxygen in there and then come out. it also shows you what the thai navy has sacrificed for these boys already. you had earlier on facebook this picture posted by the thai navy which shows the interlocking

arms, the international effort of american, british, chinese, australian, military divers joining up with the specialist british cave divers who have been, in some ways, leading this effort to get these boys out. that they even attempted this is extraordinary, and it was a very difficult decision to even pull the trigger on this operation. the last few days you could really sense the authorities struggling with when to start this operation. they had this window with the rain that is actually lightly falling on my head now, and the monsoon coming that could flood back into that cave at any moment. they had to wait till the last possible moment to get as much water as they could through the pump system they had developed to get it out so they had the best chance of getting those boys out, and they just had to make that brave call. at this stage, at this material stage, it seems perhaps it was the right call.

>> david mckenzie, thank you very much. stay close with us. we're going to check back with you. you guys are looking at live pictures right now out of thailand as we wait for more information on this incredible rescue. when we come back to break, we'll talk about what is the impact on these kids? >> we see the left side of the screen. this is the hospital where these boys and the coach will be taken. what physical, psychological, emotional scars could be still remaining after this 15-day ordeal? stay with us. the breaking news coverage continues in a moment. three are fha, one is va. so what can you do? she's saying a whole lotta people want to buy this house. but you got this! rocket mortgage by quicken loans makes the complex simple. understand the details and get approved in as few as eight minutes. by america's largest mortgage lender.

breaking news here. this video from cnn's thai affiliate, spring news, is reporting that according to a military source, at least one boy has been transported on this helicopter to a hospital. we know that these boys have to be checked out after what's been going on for the last 15 days. live pictures now. we have a picture here. this is of the helicopter that just landed -- give me that again? so this helicopter just landed after transporting, as we're told, at least one boy from that cave. they'll be headed in to be checked out for any severe -- and even the minor -- effects of this cave ordeal. >> and we've also seen, of course, several ambulances as well leave from the cave area.

we've seen some ambulances arrive at the hospital that was put in place in their plan that they would be brought to. we do not know if, in fact, the boys are inside those ambulances. we can only sort of loosely connect the dots on that. a witness with a rescue team did tell us that they saw three boiboy boys emerge from that cave, but we cannot confirm in fact that the boys were on those ambulances. we did see them come in and leave that facility. >> we can't drop that banner, that's from "spring news," but on the right of your screen near the helicopter, you can see a lot of activity there. i can't discern or decipher if there is a gurney that's being mo moved at all or if that's any of the boys there, but we are seeing activity here from this helicopter that just landed, this is, of course, to transport the boys to the hospital. i also want to make sure that we

temper expectation, because as one of the sources near the hospital -- or near the cave told us that they've seen three boys who are evacuated. let's bring in david mckenzie as part of this operation. the strongest boys, we know, david, were to be brought out first. let's not go through a point where we expect that this will be the speed that all of those inside the cave will be brought out. >> reporter: well, that's right. that was the original plan. but as we have been reporting earlier today, it was up to ultimately the boys to decide, in conjunction with the doctor deep in that cavern in the mountain which is now shrouded in darkness behind me, to come up with the plan of who would go first. initially they said it should be the strongest to test the system. but the boys could have come up with another plan. you must remember, these are all boys who know each other pretty well. they're in a soccer team

together. that cameraderie, say experts i've talked to over the last few days, have been critical at keeping their spirits up. they've managed to get those messages to their parents. and just envision how they actually did it. they had to write them notes on a scrap of paper which would have been folded up, put in a sealed container or plastic bag of some kind, strapped to a world specialist diver, dived out of that tunnel and then out into the outside world to hand to the parents who then wrote a letter back. but those kind of small gestures would have been incredibly important to keeping their spirits up through this ordeal. and as we've been reporting from our eyewitnesses, affiliates and agencies, there is definite activity of boys leaving that cave. we don't know their health, how their health is at this point. that will be a critical thing to check. what do they want to do once they're out and they're relatively healthy? number one thing, they want to

eat food, all kinds of food. they've been stuck in there for days without proper nutrition. they've been hunkered down probably not fully aware of the extraordinary level of international support and rescue effort they're getting. but they're young kids, they just want to get out, see their families and have the basic good things in life. >> we see here another ambulance that is leaving that scene, we would assume, headed to the hospital potentially with another boy. >> david mckenzie, thank you so much. >> excellent reporting this morning. >> this is really not the news we expected to deliver, at least this early this morning. again, 12 boys, one coach inside that cave for 15 nights. an eyewitness said they've seen at least three boys evacuated from that cave. as you pointed out, victor, we were told the strongest would be brought out first so we still have a long way to go. >> they are understanding that they have to get this done now because the rains are coming.

now, we're not talking inches of rain, potentially, but when you're on a mountain and it's coming downhill and going into a cave, it can certainly create more problems. we'll continue the breaking news kovr coverage throughout the day. thank you for watching this morning. >> stay with us. dana bash on "state of the union" is right after the break.

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hello, i'm dana bash in for jake tapper in washington where the state of our union is on pins and needles. we're getting word of rescues from that flooded cave in thailand. the thai navy s.e.a.l.s confirmed that four boys have been evacuated. our cnn affiliate saw at least one boy flown to the hospital by helicopter. now, the 12 children between the ages of 11 and 16, plus their coach, had been stuck for