Rescuers face race against time to free trapped boys from cave as oxygen level drops
Pressure is mounting on rescuers to bring forward a plan for 12 boys and their coach trapped inside a flooded cave in northern Thailand's Chiang Rai, after the death of a former navy diver and a drop in oxygen levels underground.Officials initially thought they could keep the team members in the current chamber of the Tham Luang cave complex for up to four months to wait out the rainy season so that they will be able to walk out. But the death of a rescue team member on Thursday during an air tank delivery mission underscored the danger of moving from the chamber to mouth of the cave, and raised serious doubts about the safety of bringing the boys out through the flooded passageways.In addition, oxygen levels in the chamber have fallen to potentially dangerous levels. Both factors are forcing a reassessment of the situation.Authorities are reportedly working to get a five-kilometer pipe into the cave to supply the group with air. They are also trying to feed a fiber optic cable through to the group, to connect them to their families for the first time in two weeks.