Rescuers race to free five people trapped in flooded cave in Laos | BBC News

Rescuers in Laos are hoping to save five people found alive inside a flooded cave after they were trapped for a week following heavy rain and landslides. Two other people who were with them are missing..The seven were part of a group of villagers from the central province of Xaysomboun who had gone into the cave in search of gold deposits and wildlife, but were trapped as the cave's entrance was blocked. Footage shared by the rescuers reveals cave divers crawling through narrow, muddy passageways that were almost completely flooded. The cave system, which extends deep underground, is extremely narrow, with some chambers measuring only about 50cm wide Specialist rescue diver Mikko Paasi from Finland said that rescuers needed to "navigate hundreds of metres of constant restrictions, flood waters, collapse hazards and high risk of contaminated air quality" inside the cave. Jane Hill presents BBC News at Ten reporting by Jonathan Head. Subscribe to our channel here: https://bbc.in/bbcnews For the latest news download the BBC News app or visit BBC.com/news #BBCNews