SWFL scuba expert outlines next steps for Thailand rescue mission

Diver Ben Reymenants said he was part of a mission that found a missing soccer team more than one week after they went missing inside a partially flooded cave in Thailand.

“It was very taxing especially with the emotional loads of 12 live boys,” Reymenants said.

Now that they’ve been located, there is a looming question: How will they get out?

“The only option is to swim in and swim out,” said Ramiro Palma, owner of Scubavice Scuba Center.

Palma said the process could take months.

“At this point, they’re going to be rescued, it’s just a matter of getting them to understand how to wear the mask, how to breath out of the breathing apparatus regulator and then just drag their butts out of there

Palma said the rescue team will need to bring scuba gear, food and water for each child.

Some kids may not have experience swimming, scuba diving.

“It’s going to be put the mask on stick this regulator in your mouth and hold onto me and more than likely they’ll just have to swim and drag those kids out of there,” Palma said.

Palma said the conditions for the team will not be ideal, as they encounter cold temperatures and a dark cave. He added it’ll be challenging for those who may have never been scuba diving before.

“We say in the world of scuba, its a tragedy when one person dies, its a devastation when two people die if the rescuer dies trying to save the rescuee,” Palma said.