Today, we are going to talk about a real-life miracle: the Thailand Sleeping Beauty Cave Rescue incident. When we look at the entire event, one can't help but feel that our lives are as fragile as a blade of grass in the face of nature's power. In this world, there are still many things that science cannot explain.

This incident made headlines at the time, and most of you probably have some knowledge of it. In June to July 2018, a total of 13 individuals, comprising 12 young boys and one coach, were trapped inside a cave for a harrowing 18 days. With survival odds of less than 10%, the fact that they all made it out alive can only be described as a miracle within a miracle.

So, how did this seemingly impossible miracle come together, and what was the supernatural event that the authorities brushed aside? What crucial details may have been overlooked? Today, we will discuss all of these aspects.

This incident occurred in Chiang Rai Province, on the border of northern Thailand, near the intersection of Laos and Myanmar. It's not far from the border with Yunnan, China. The Sleeping Beauty Cave itself is a little over 10 kilometers long and features a complex and intricate underground topography, reportedly never fully traversed by anyone, making it a classic example of karst terrain.

Karst terrain is something Chinese people might be familiar with, as it's widespread in the Yungui Plateau of China. One of its defining characteristics is significant groundwater infiltration, with many underground caves and a network of underground rivers.

On June 23, 2018, the 12 young members of the Wild Boars youth soccer team, led by their assistant coach, Ekkapol Chantawong, ventured into this Sleeping Beauty Cave for an adventure. Now, let's talk about Coach Ekkapol's background. He had spent eight years as a Buddhist monk before returning to secular life to become a soccer coach. Remembering his background is crucial, as it becomes a key factor in all 12 boys ultimately surviving.

I'll touch on this again later, but it's essential to note that taking the kids into the cave was a significant error on the coach's part. Many locals had entered the cave before without any issues, and in previous years, flooding in the cave typically didn't occur until late July. Coupled with clear weather at the time, the coach underestimated the potential dangers.

今天我们讲一件真实发生过的奇迹，泰国睡美人洞营救事件。 整个事件看下来，我只想说在大自然面前，我们的生命渺小如草芥。 在这个世界上，还存在着很多目前科学，无法解释的事情。 这件事当时闹得很大，想必大家都多多少少知道一些，2018年6月到7月，12名少年和一个教练一共13个人，在洞穴里被困整整18天。 在生存概率不足10%的情况下，最后全部生还，可以说是奇迹中的奇迹。 那么这个不可能完成的奇迹是如何一点点拼凑起来的？ 被官方一笔带过的超自然事件到底是什么？ 同时还有哪些遗漏的重要细节，今天我们就来聊一聊。 这件事发生在泰国北部边境的清莱府，跟老挝缅甸交界的地方。 离中国云南的边境也不远，这个睡美人洞全长10公里多一点。里面地形是错综复杂，据说还没有人完全走完过，是典型的卡斯特地貌。 卡斯特地貌中国人应该很熟悉，在中国云桂高原广泛分布，这种地貌特点之一就是地表渗水严重。 下面有很多的溶洞，而且里面沟壑纵横，地下暗河也有很多。 2018年的6月23日，泰国野猪少年足球队的12名少年，在助理教练仓塔旺的带领下，进入到了这个睡美人洞探险。 先来说一下这位教练，教练曾做过8年的僧人，后来还俗后开始当足球教练。 请大家记住他的背景，这也是12名少年最终全部生还的一个重要的关键点。 我后面还会再讲到，这里不得不说带孩子们进入洞穴是教练的重大失误。 因为当地很多人都进去玩过，而且没有发生过什么危险，往年都差不多要到7月底洞里才会有洪水。再加上当时天气晴朗，教练就掉以轻心了。

Little did they know that not long after they entered, heavy rain began to pour from the sky. As we all know, Thailand experiences a tropical monsoon climate, with a clear distinction between the dry and rainy seasons. The rainy season in Thailand typically runs from June to October, characterized by sudden downpours even on bright, sunny days, with rapidly changing weather conditions.

The water from the mountains started seeping into the cave, quickly flooding it. By the time they realized the danger, there was no way out. The cave's meandering and low-lying terrain meant that the floodwaters even submerged the cave floor. To escape, they would need to dive underwater, which was clearly beyond their capabilities.

So, the coach led the children to a relatively higher ground within the cave, where they waited for rescue. There was no mobile phone signal in this area, and it was approximately 4 kilometers from the cave entrance. Among these children, the oldest was 16 years old, and the youngest was only 11. Fortunately, when they arrived, they had parked their bicycles near the cave entrance. When their parents couldn't find the children later, they deduced that the children must have been trapped inside the cave.

They immediately reported the incident, and by 1 a.m. that night, the first group of rescue personnel arrived. However, lacking diving equipment, they dared not enter the water recklessly. It's crucial to note that the water inside the cave wasn't clear; it was murky floodwater filled with debris and sediment. Visibility was extremely low.

The rescue team had to resort to pumping water out, but due to the continuous rainfall, as they pumped water out, more water seeped in, and the sand and debris kept clogging the drainage pipes. Essentially, their efforts were futile.

The following day, they sought assistance from the Thai Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation rescue team. Unfortunately, to everyone's surprise, these rescue personnel also became trapped in the cave, and there was no communication from them. So, not only were the children not rescued, but four more people were trapped inside the cave.

On June 25, the third day of the children's entrapment, the Thai Royal Navy SEALs arrived. However, the difficulty of the rescue mission exceeded their expectations. Rescuing the trapped individuals required long periods of diving, with each trip taking several hours. Moreover, the water inside the cave flowed rapidly, visibility was extremely poor, and the underwater structure resembled a maze. There were numerous depressions, narrow passages, and tiny dead-end routes throughout the cave. In some extremely tight spots, divers had to remove their oxygen tanks, essentially navigating blindly in the turbulent floodwaters, which spanned over 10,000 meters in the labyrinthine cave system. The challenge was far beyond imagination.

Therefore, not long into the summer, the SEAL team had to retreat. The third rescue attempt was deemed a failure.

没想到他们进去没多久，天上就开始下起了大雨，我们都知道，泰国是热带季风气候，基本上只有旱季和雨季的区别。 6月到10月是泰国的雨季，雨季的时候，经常看着阳光明媚，转眼间就会漂泊大雨，天气变化那是相当的快。 从山上山下渗进来的水，瞬间就灌进了睡美人洞，等他们意识到危险时，已经出不去了。 由于这个洞里，蜿蜒曲折，地势低的地方，洪水甚至淹没了洞底，要出去必须要潜水。这又显然是他们无法做到的。 于是教练带着孩子们，找到了一个地势相对较高的地方，等待救援，这里面没有手机信号，离洞口差不多有4公里远。 这些孩子中最大的16岁，最小的只有11岁，幸好他们来的时候，把自行车停在了洞口，所以后来找不到孩子的家长们，根据自行车判断，他们应该是被困在洞里面了。 于是立即就报了警，当晚凌晨一点，第一批救援人员到达，但由于没有潜水设备，所以不敢贸然下水。 大家注意，洞里这个水不是清水，而是洪水，洪水里面有大量的沙石和杂物。能见度那是非常的低。 救援队只好先用水泵抽水，但是由于这个雨一直在下，这边抽水，里边漏水，沙石杂物还总是堵住排水管。基本上没什么用。 第二天，他们找到了泰国水务部救援队，结果没想到，救援人员也被困在了洞穴之中，再也没有了消息。孩子们还没救出来，又困进去了4个人。 6月25日，孩子们被困的第三天，泰国皇家海军海豹突击队来了，但是没想到，救援的难度超出了他们的想象，想要救援必须要进行长时间的潜水，单趟都要好几个小时，而且这个洞里水流非常的湍急，能见度又特别的低，水下的结构像迷宫一样，地面有许多的凹陷狭窄的通道，到处都是小岔路四胡同，一些十分狭窄的地方想要通过，还必须卸下氧气瓶，等于是要蒙着眼睛，在水下1万多米的洪流迷宫里，找到被困的人，难度之大超乎想象。 因此夏天没过多久，海豹队员就折返了回来，第三次救援行动宣告失败。

Even the Navy SEALs were unable to make progress, and by this time, 72 crucial hours had passed. The situation was becoming increasingly grim. That's when the first key figure in this rescue effort emerged – a British cave expert residing in Chiang Rai Province.

His name is Vern, and he had explored the Sleeping Beauty Cave on numerous occasions. Vern not only provided a map of the cave he had created but also immediately advised Thai authorities to seek international assistance from the British Cave Diving Association.

Why did they turn to this association? Because the two most renowned cave diving experts in the world were part of it: John Volanthen and Rick Stanton. They were the top shallow water experts in the British Cave Diving Association and legends in the global shallow cave diving community.

Let me explain here that different countries have varying cave environments, and consequently, cave divers from different countries have different areas of expertise. The UK, due to its low visibility and the presence of dry caves mixed with water caves, actually has an environment quite similar to that of the Sleeping Beauty Cave. Therefore, enlisting British cave divers was indeed the most suitable choice. Vern deserves significant credit for his quick assessment of the formidable challenge and his immediate identification of the most suitable rescue personnel.

Simultaneously, news of the incident rapidly spread worldwide, prompting rescue teams and professional cave divers from various countries to rush to Thailand. On June 27, the fifth day of their entrapment, two British cave diving experts arrived at the Sleeping Beauty Cave, despite days of heavy rainfall and the turbulent water flow inside the cave.

As soon as the muddy waters allowed, the British experts dived in to initiate the rescue operation. All rescue personnel agreed that these two British experts represented the children's last hope. If these cave diving experts couldn't succeed, it seemed no one in the world could.

It wasn't until 3:00 PM on June 28, after enduring countless hardships underwater, that these two British rescue personnel emerged from the cave. They had spent over ten grueling hours underwater but had been unable to locate the trapped children and coach.

However, at a location known as Camp 3, they found the first group of rescuers who had been trapped inside earlier. The British experts managed to rescue these four individuals first. At the same time, they realized a more dire problem – during the rescue of these four individuals, one of them suffered a psychological breakdown during the underwater journey, becoming uncooperative and almost perishing during the dive. But escaping the cave required navigating underwater, and if even the adult rescuers struggled, how could 12 children who had been trapped for a longer period cope?

Considering the children's lower physical and mental resilience compared to adults, the two British experts, upon emerging from the cave, immediately consulted with other professional cave divers and collectively concluded that, given the current circumstances, the rescue mission could not be completed.

连海豹突击队都没办法，此时已经过了黄金救援时间72小时。形势越来越不乐观，此时本次救援的第一个关键人物出现了，清莱府当地居住着一位英国的洞穴专家。 他叫维恩，他曾多次探索过这个水美人洞，维恩不但第一时间提供了他绘制的洞穴的地图，还立即建议泰国官方向英国洞潜协会请求国际救援。 为什么要找这个协会呢？因为世界上最厉害的两名洞潜大佬就在这个协会里，他们是John Volanthen和Rick Stanton。 他们是英国洞潜协会顶尖的浅水专家, 也是全球洞穴浅水界的传奇人物. 这里跟大家解释一下，各个国家的洞穴环境不太一样，所以不同国家的洞潜人员擅长点也不一样。 英国因为洞穴能见度低，干洞水洞混合的特点，其实跟水美人洞的环境非常的相似。 所以找英国的洞穴潜水员确实是最合适的，不得不说维恩非常给力，他第一时间就判断出这件事难度太大，而且第一时间就找到了最适合的救援人员。 与此同时这个事也迅速传遍了世界，来自多个国家的救援队以及专业洞潜人员，也陆续出发赶往泰国。 6月27日也就是被困的第五天的晚上，英国的两名洞潜专家抵达水美人洞，由于当时连日暴雨。洞内水流非常的湍急。 浑浊两位英国专家到了后，立即就下水开始了救援。 所有救援人员都公认这是孩子们最后的希望了，如果这两位洞潜大神都不行，那么全世界真的就没有人能做到。 直到6月28日下午3点，这两名英国救援人员才从洞里出来，他们在水下历经千辛万苦。整整耗时十几个小时，可是还是没能找到被困的孩子与教练。 但是在一个被称作3号营地的落脚点，找到了之前被困在里面的第一批救援人员。 英国专家把这四个人先救了出来，与此同时他们意识到一个更严重的问题，在救这四个人的过程中，其中有一位人员在潜水过程中心理崩溃，无法配合完成潜水。 差一点就死在潜水的途中，但如果想要离开洞穴，势必要经历潜水这一关，身为救援人员的大人都崩溃了，何况是12个被困的时间更久的孩子？ 他们无论从体力意志力都比大人更容易出事，于是两位英国专家一出来，就同其他的专业洞潜人员立即讨论了救援的可能性，最后他们一致认为结合现实的情况，这次救援没办法完成。