VIENTIANE, Laos — 7 June 2026, International rescue teams have called off the search for two Lao nationals still trapped inside a cave in Long Jaeng district, Xaisomboun province, Laos, after floodwaters and an earthquake made further operations impossible.
Five of the seven people trapped have been rescued. The remaining two were among a group of Lao nationals who entered the cave on 19 May to prospect for gold before heavy rain and flash floods cut off their exit.
Kengkaj Bongkavong, the rescue mission commander, said the operation became untenable due to uncontrollable natural conditions. The worksite sits between four mountains, causing floodwater to pour in from all directions faster than pumps could drain it. An earthquake centred 200 kilometres away also triggered a rockfall that blocked the cave entrance.
“Every person on the ground right now is heartbroken,” he said, adding that the goal had always been to bring everyone home, but the mission could not continue.
Before withdrawing, rescue teams left supplies and equipment at various points inside the cave in hopes the two survivors might find them. Pumping operations will continue to maintain oxygen levels inside the cave. Thai rescue teams began pulling out personnel and equipment on Sunday, but said they are ready to return immediately if conditions improve.
Rescue diver Manat Artmongkol wrote on social media that the tears shed by the team were not from weakness, but from having given everything they had. “We did not fail. We did not abandon anyone. We simply reached the furthest point any human being could go,” he wrote.
Fellow rescuer Jakkrits Tangtang, known as Pound, said the team had fought as hard as they could but could not overcome nature. He added that he had personally donated 30 million kip to each of the two missing persons’ families — totalling 60 million kip, equivalent to around 90,000 baht.
