In 2018, after torrential rains inundated the system and their egress, a soccer team of 12 boys and their assistant coach were stranded within a cave in Thailand.
The new Netflix limited series Thai Cave Rescue, which was created by Michael Russell Gunn and Dana Ledoux Miller, dramatises the actual rescue operation to save them.
In contrast to Ron Howard's Thirteen Lives, Thai Cave Rescue places more emphasis on the efforts made by everyone participating in the rescue effort, including about 100 divers.
The 12 boys and their coach were first found in the cave system by British divers John Volanthen and Rick Stanton.
On July 8, 2018, a rescue team made up of five Thai Navy SEALs and 13 foreign cave divers arrived at the group to aid in their exit from the cave.
The operation was commanded by the British divers Volanthen, Stanton, Jason Mallinson, and Chris Jewell, as well as the Australian divers Richard Harris and Craig Challen.
In addition to working as a volunteer rescuer and an IT consultant in Bristol, England, Volanthen enjoys cave diving.
Stanton spent 25 years as a firefighter for the West Midlands Fire Service before becoming a volunteer rescuer and civilian diver. He, Volanthen, and Jewell are all members of the British Cave Rescue Council.
In a January 2022 interview with CNN, Stanton stated that he was not "declaring it a miracle" regarding the rescue operations.
Stanton added, "I'll extend it to say that it was remarkable that all these things happened in that order." "Thousands of people worked together, and there was excellent planning involved. Everything happening was miraculous, but I'm not calling it a miracle."
Volanthen and Stanton received honorary degrees from the University of Bristol in July 2022.
"No one could better exemplify the values this university prizes - resilience, courage and outstanding skills - than Rick and John, who were to save the lives of so many others while putting their own lives at risk, daily, for the 15 days of this enormous rescue effort that captured the world's attention," said Linda Wilson, vice president of the University of Bristol's Spelaeological Society in a press release.
In July 2019, Mallinson—a diver and explorer—received an honorary doctorate from Huddersfield University.
Stanton and Volanthen received the George Medal in December 2018, while Jewell and Mallinson received the Queen's Gallantry Medal from the late Queen Elizabeth II.
When Harris entered the cave, he assessed the health of all the boys and their coach. Based on his medical opinion, he determined that it was safe for the crew to rescue the boys using anaesthetic to give them the best chance of surviving. Harris played a crucial part in the rescue mission.
Following the success of their rescue operations, Harris and Challen were jointly named 2019 Australian of the Year.
