AUSTRALIAN divers helping the dramatic rescue of a young soccer team trapped inside a cave in northern Thailand face a gruelling few days ahead after the Interior Minister said they would not be replaced. General Anupong Paojinda said the same team of 90 rescue divers, which includes 50 foreigners, would continue the rescue following the successful extraction of four boys on Monday. Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has confirmed 19 Australians are involved in the rescue at the Tham Luang cave near Chiang Rai. Camera Icon Australian Federal Police and Defence Force divers talk to a Thai rescuer Credit: AP Australian Federal Police and Defence Force divers, and doctor and experienced cave diver Richard Harris played key roles in the rescue operation which began at 10am (local time) on Sunday. General Anupong said the same teams of divers would bring out the remaining eight boys and their coach who have been trapped in the cave for more than two weeks, because they are familiar with the terrain. But he added the rescue teams would be thoroughly assessed to ensure they were ready and prepared to proceed with the second phase of the rescue operation. Camera Icon A Thai rescue teams walk inside cave complex where 12 boys and their soccer coach went missing. Credit: AP Narongsak Osottanakorn, head of the search and rescue operation, said late on Sunday that he expected rescue operations to resume in 10-20 hours because of a need to replace air tanks used by the divers. But he also warned the entire rescue operation could take three to four days to complete. As of early Monday afternoon there was no official confirmation the rescue had restarted. Play Video Footage from inside the Tham Luang cave, from Saturday, shows the efforts made by rescue workers to free the 12 trapped boys and their football coach. Footage from inside the Tham Luang cave, from Saturday, shows the efforts made by rescue workers to free the 12 trapped boys and their football coach. Thai commanders are concerned about rising water levels in the cave and a depleted oxygen supply. They want to extract the remaining nine as quickly as they can before more heavy rains inundate the mountainous area. Dr Harris has played a crucial role in determining how the rescue would unfold after diving in to make a medical assessment of the boys, aged 11-16, on Saturday. Camera Icon Rescuers inside the Thai cave. Credit: AP This cleared the way for the rescue team to pursue the option of diving the boys out in small groups, with each one accompanied by an experienced diver. Ms Bishop said Dr Harris had been essential to assessing the boys’ health. “He is an experienced diver, which is a great benefit because he’s brought all that expertise to assist the Thai government in this rescue mission,” she said. General Anupong said the four boys rescued were in good condition and being treated at Chiangrai Prachanukroh Hospital in Chiang Rai, about 60 kilometres from Tham Luang. Camera Icon Emergency workers carry a stretcher with one of the rescued boys. Credit: AP While he described them as “strong and safe” doctors at the hospital have said there will be “no hugging” allowed when they are reunited with their families later on Monday until blood tests are returned. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha refused to be drawn on how long the rescue mission would take, other than to say “we will do it as soon as possible, in the safest way”.<doc-sep>He was meant to be holidaying on South Australia's Nullarbor Plain, but instead, an Adelaide anaesthetist has been plunged into the spotlight, working among the international rescue team to extract a soccer team and its coach from a flooded cave in Thailand. Richard "Harry" Harris was due to travel to the Nullarbor on Friday for a cave diving holiday but cancelled his plans at the last minute after receiving a call from expert divers from the UK on Thursday. Thai authorities have said 90 divers are involved in the rescue, 50 of them foreign rescue workers. Dr Harris' friend and colleague of more than 20 years Michael Eaton said the Adelaide doctor's expertise was matched by very few people in the world. "He has just got so much experience of diving in so many different places around the world, I know for a fact he has dived in China on several occasions, once at the request of the Chinese government in fact and it's the same sort of geology across South East Asia, it will be sort of limestone cave networks," Dr Eaton said. "I have been on many holidays with Harry — every trip with Harry is an adventure and when we go on a Harris holiday we call it a 'Harris Adventure Tour'. "He is of course the main man on the Harris Adventure Tour and this is one sort of adventure." Richard Harris has travelled around the world exploring and helping with challenging medical retrievals. ( Supplied: Michael Eaton Dr Eaton said it was a tribute to his friend's skill that the British, known as the best cave divers in the world, wanted the Australian medical specialist on the ground in Thailand to help with the rescue. "It is a big honour and a big deal and it is really dangerous what they are doing because of course it's not just preparing in the usual sort of pristine clean water that they normally do, this is really hazardous I think," he said. "There is no visibility, there is all of these currents, the demand of trying to get people out who can't swim. "This is not the usual well-planned thing where you can make decisions sensibly and it would be a lot of pressure on them… we are looking forward to him coming home." Dr Harris' colleagues at MedSTAR have been watching his contribution to the Thai cave rescue from their base in Adelaide. ( ABC News: Rebecca Puddy Things can go wrong quickly Bill Griggs, Dr Harris' former boss at the South Australian Ambulance Service's MedSTAR emergency medical retrieval team, said attention to detail was important for cave divers as well as anaesthetists. "To do cave diving, you have to be all about attention to detail and you have to be meticulous," Dr Griggs told ABC Radio Adelaide. "Things can go wrong very quickly if you don't have your back-up plan, [and] Harry also brings that to his practice of medicine." Dr Harris completed his medical degree at Flinders University in Adelaide, before undertaking a postgraduate certification in aeromedical retrieval through James Cook University. He took over as MedSTAR's head of retrieval co-ordination when Bill Griggs left the position in 2016. Dr Harris has extensive cave-diving experience spanning several decades, and has completed complex dives all over the world, including in China, Christmas Island and New Zealand. Dr Griggs, who was involved in the medical response to the Bali bombings, said it was Dr Harris's "fairly unique" combination of medical knowledge and cave diving that led to him being asked to join the Thailand mission. "He has done many things with the cave diving over many years and he is known to a very small group of people who have that very high level of expertise," Dr Griggs said. "The combination of his medical knowledge and his cave diving skills was clearly [why] the British guys requested that he come as well." Dr Harris is "all about attention to detail", Dr Griggs says. ( Facebook: Richard Harris Dr Harris a 'selfless', 'extremely thoughtful' person MedSTAR clinical director Andrew Pearce said he was staying in touch with Dr Harris to check on his welfare while he was at the rescue site. Dr Harris was part of the Australian medical assistance team registered with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Loading "He's not someone you just stumble upon overnight — it takes years and he's got over 30 years of diving experience," Dr Pearce said. "He has the right skill mix and he's the right person." Dr Pearce described the Adelaide-based anaesthetist as selfless, extremely thoughtful and a quiet person who had previously avoided media attention. It is understood that Dr Harris had previously participated in several difficult retrievals, including the recovery of the body of his friend, Melbourne diver Agnes Milowka, from Tank Cave near Mount Gambier in 2011. In 2015, Dr Harris was presented with an outstanding achievement award at OzTek's Advanced Diving Conference and Exhibition. According to his profile on the Specialist Anaesthetic Services website, Dr Harris "has managed to combine his taste for adventure with his medical practice and a lifelong interest in the underwater world". "His love of underwater exploration has led him to work on National Geographic documentaries, feature films and with various teams worldwide in the role of diver, underwater cameraman and of course medical support. "This led him into the field of diving and hyperbaric medicine. His work at South Australia's emergency medical retrieval service (MedSTAR) as an aeromedical consultant continues to challenge him with the care of critically ill patients in remote and austere environments. "He is a member of the Explorers Club of New York and recently received an Australian award for 'Outstanding Contributions to Cave Exploration'."<doc-sep>A South Australian doctor is among the experts involved in the rescue mission to retrieve 12 schoolboys and their football coach from a cave in Thailand. Dr Richard Harris, an anaesthetist with more than 30 years of diving experience, flew to Thailand last week. The Adelaide Advertiser reported on Sunday that Harris was working with the Royal Thai Navy and medical experts in Chiang Rai as they prepared the evacuation. The rescue operation began at 1pm AEST on Sunday after ambulances arrived and the area around the Tham Luang cave complex was evacuated. Harris works for MedStar, the aeromedical retrieval service for SA Ambulance, and has cave diving expertise. In 2011, he was part of the team that worked to retrieve the body of his friend the diver Agnes Milowka from Tank Cave at Millicent. The website for the advanced diving conference OzTek says Harris has been involved in cave diving exploration in China, Christmas Island, New Zealand, as well as Australia, and has an interest in diving safety and accident investigation, especially in relation to cave and technical diving. “He plays a key role in developing a cave and sump rescue capability in Australia,” it states. “His professional life in the fields of anaesthesia, diving and retrieval medicine combine nicely with his interest in wilderness and expedition medicine.” Thirteen international divers and five Thai navy seals have been sent in to rescue the group. Thai authorities said the earliest any of the group could emerge is midnight AEST.<doc-sep>Official: Need more oxygen to finish rescue An ambulance leaves the Tham Luang cave area after divers evacuated some of the 12 boys and their coach trapped at the cave in Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park in the Mae Sai district of Chiang Rai province on July 8, 2018. - Elite divers on July 8 began the extremely dangerous operation to extract 12 boys and their football coach who have been trapped in a flooded cave complex in northern Thailand for more than two weeks, as looming monsoon rains threatened the rescue effort. (Photo by LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA / AFP) / (Photo credit should read LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA/AFP/Getty Images) Father of rescued boy: I want to hug him 12 boys and their coach all out of Thai cave See first video of Thai boys' rescue from cave Some of the boys who were trapped in a cave in Northern Thailand outside a hospital in Chiang Rai after being discharged. CHIANG RAI, THAILAND - JULY 18: Twelve boys and their coach from the "Wild Boars" soccer team arrive for a press conference for the first time since they were rescued from a cave in northern Thailand last week, on July 18, 2018 in Chiang Rai, Thailand. The 12 boys, aged 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old coach were discharged early from Chiang Rai Prachanukroh hospital after a speedy recovery and thanked those involved in their rescue. (Photo by Linh Pham/Getty Images) (CNN) — Rescuers from China and Australia have joined the search for a youth soccer team missing in a Thai cave, as divers believe they’re closing in on the spot where the group could be sheltering. The international rescue operation – which includes more than 1,000 people from Thai emergency services, alongside a US military contingent and British cave experts – has been ramping up its efforts since the 12 boys and their 25-year-old soccer coach disappeared during an outing in the caves in northern Thailand on June 23. Divers are now closing in on elevated dry area, called Pattaya Beach, where they believe the missing boys may have taken refuge in the Tham Luang Nang Non cave system. The dry area is several kilometers from the entrance of the cave. AKKAPOL CHANTHAWONG/FACEBOOK The missing boys, with their coach, are seen here in a photo taken from the coach's Facebook page. Water from the flooded cave has receded in recent days, allowing rescue teams to gain ground, according to Chiang Rai provincial governor Narongsak Osatanakorn. Linh Pham/Getty Images Rescue workers carry water pumping equipment into Tham Luang Nang Non cave on Sunday. Oxygen tanks have been installed at 25-meter junctures for divers to use, and a water pumping machine has also being deployed, added Osatanakorn. Heavy rains had previously hampered the rescue operation, as the caves became extremely dark and muddy. Linh Pham/Getty Images The rescue operation continues eight days after the boys went missing. On Friday a team of six Chinese experts arrived at the site in Chiang Rai province, according to the Chinese Embassy in Thailand. The experts hail from the Beijing Peaceland Foundation, an organization with more than 100 rescue teams and experience carrying out similar operations in mountainous Myanmar and Nepal. On Saturday Australia also deployed a team of six experts from its national police’s Specialist Response Group, according to the country’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop. The group, which typically carries out land search and rescue operations, also has experience diving in flooded caves. For now, divers continue to work at the mouth of the cave, and drilling is underway at several points in the cave complex, primarily to relieve the flooding. Anxious wait for families The boys, who range in age from 11 to 16 years old and a part of the same soccer team, have been missing for nine days. A park officer sounded the alarm after spotting the boys’ bicycles near the entrance to the off-limits cave complex. The cave labyrinth is popular with tourists and for the first kilometer (0.6 miles) or so inside the cavernous entrance, limestone rock formations hug high ceilings, creating an almost amphitheater-like atmosphere. Deeper inside, the passages narrow into places that locals warn it’s not safe to go. Sakchai Lalit/AP Thai soldiers walk out of the entrance to the Tham Luang Nang Non cave on Friday. In the vigils that have grown with every day of fruitless searches, families and friends have prayed, made offerings, and held fast to the possibility of signs of life. Some, enduring the torture of such a long, silent wait, have collapsed in the mud with exhaustion, and been sent to a hospital. “I feel I have just lost my heart when I found his bag, mobile phone and his shoes,” said Sudsakorn Sutham, whose son, Prajak is among the 12 missing boys. “But all I can do is wait.” 7 days in the dark: Time is running out for teenage soccer team Rescuers try other entry routes Late last week trekkers discovered a hidden opening deep in the jungle that may be a alternative point of entry to the cave system. The natural chimney, which is around 1.5 meters in diameter and at least 22 meters (72 feet) deep, was found to the north of the opening of the cave, where the boys’ bikes were found last Saturday. A mini digger lifted by MI17 helicopter. It’ll be dropped near one of prospect chimneys around Pha Mee Hill. Search continues. #Thamluang pic.twitter.com/NwlzPbuLV1 — Kochakorn J. (@KochaOlarn) July 1, 2018 Approaching the tunnels from above is “more promising,” according to British rescuers at the scene, as it bypasses a passage blocked by flood waters. Two British cave experts entered the chimney Friday morning, managing to descend to a depth of about 20 meters, before being relieved by another team. Though this is not the first natural chimney found on Pha Mee, it remains the most promising, according to search and rescue teams on site. However, surveying the area for other possible entry points is slow and time-consuming, as the terrain is tough going – mountainous and heavily forested.<doc-sep>
An Australian doctor who also is a renowned cave diver persuaded rescuers to change their initial strategy of first removing the strongest of the 12 boys trapped inside the flooded Thai cavern, according to a report. Dr. Richard Harris, 53, an anesthesiologist from Adelaide, had planned to embark on a cave-diving trip in Western Australia on Friday before British officials asked for his help in the dangerous rescue mission in Chiang Rai, the Times of London reported. The doctor, who works for the South Australian Ambulance Service’s aeromedical evacuation service MedStar, joined Thai navy and medical experts as they prepared to evacuate the trapped soccer team members and their coach from the Tham Luang cave complex. Risking his own life, Harris made the treacherous trip into the subterranean chamber early Sunday to check on the boys after they had been trapped for more than two weeks. After examining them, Harris recommended that the weakest of the boys be rescued before their stronger teammates — leading to the first batch of four being rescued Sunday, according to the newspaper. Dr. Michael Eaton, Harris’ longtime friend and colleague, told abc.net.au that the 30-year cave diver’s expertise is virtually unmatched across the globe. “He has just got so much experience of diving in so many different places around the world,” Eaton told the Australian news site. “I know for a fact he has dived in China on several occasions, once at the request of the Chinese government, in fact, and it’s the same sort of geology across Southeast Asia. It will be sort of limestone cave networks,” Eaton added. “I have been on many holidays with Harry — every trip with Harry is an adventure and when we go on a Harris holiday, we call it a ‘Harris Adventure Tour,’” he said. “He is, of course, the main man on the Harris Adventure Tour and this is one sort of adventure.” Harris, who recently received an Australian award for “Outstanding Contributions to Cave Exploration,” also is a member of the Manhattan-based Explorers Club, which “promotes the scientific exploration of land, sea, air, and space by supporting research and education in the physical, natural and biological sciences.” see also Newest rescues are healthier than first boys freed from cave The four boys rescued from a subterranean cave in Thailand... Bill Griggs, Harris’ former boss at MedStar, said attention to detail was important for cave divers and anesthesiologists alike. “To do cave diving, you have to be all about attention to detail and you have to be meticulous,” Griggs told ABC Radio Adelaide, according to abc.net.au. Griggs, who was involved in the medical response to the 2002 Bali bombings, said it was Harris’ combination of medical know-how and cave diving experience that led to him being asked to join the Thailand mission. “He has done many things with the cave diving over many years and he is known to a very small group of people who have that very high level of expertise,” Griggs said. MedStar clinical director Dr. Andrew Pearce said: “He’s not someone you just stumble upon overnight — it takes years and he’s got over 30 years of diving experience.” Among his exploits, Harris recovered the body of his friend Agnes Milowka, 29, in 2011 after she ran out of air in Tank Cave near Mount Gambier in South Australia, the Times of London reported. In 2015, he was presented with an outstanding achievement award at OzTek’s Advanced Diving Conference and Exhibition.