Thai cave rescue: Discovery Channel to take viewers inside dramatic operation

THE heated race to reproduce the inside story of the Thai cave rescue has been won, with one international channel rushing a special which will air in Australia.

DISCOVERY Channel has won the heated race to reproduce the inside story of the Thai Cave Rescue, rushing a special about the mission to air in Australia this week.

Operation Thai Cave Rescue will “unpack the human and scientific drama behind one of the most difficult and heart-palpitating rescues attempted in human history.”

Featuring exclusive access to the complete coverage of the event, including the rescue itself, Discovery have sourced the divers’ own UGC (user-generated content) footage and interviews of the men and women — as well as family members — “who lived and breathed the events.”

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Inside mission control of the Tham Luang cave rescue. Picture: AFP

In a statement released, with extraordinary new images from inside the cave command area, producers set up the competing tensions in this made-for-television, real-life drama.

“As the clock continues to tick, and predicted monsoon rains loom above, rescuers in the cave and above ground, plot their next move.”

Featuring interviews with medical and mental health experts, renowned cave diving instructors and the world’s leading cave diving experts and geologists, “the film paints a full picture of what the boys and their rescuers were experiencing and how these heroic divers could recover what was thought initially to be an impossible feat.”

As monsoon rain threatened, rescue personnel took a ‘no risk’ approach to the mission. Picture: AFP

“When the last boys and their coach were rescued on July 10, the world finally exhaled the breath that had been held for 18 days. Now, we collectively search for answers to understand the mystery of what happened and how, with one slight difference, the outcome might have been different.”

Hollywood producers descended upon Chiang rai during the final days of the gruelling rescue mission, who hoped to turn the operation into “a major Hollywood film with A-list stars”.

Hero aussie diver Dr Richard “Harry” Harris, who played a pivotal role in the rescue, was reportedly offered “serious money” for a lead role, but is believed he is not considering it.

Craig Challen (left) and Dr Richard “Harry” Harris (right) played a major role in the rescue mission. Picture: AAP

The 12 Thai boys — members of the Wild Boars soccer team — and their coach became trapped in the complex Tham Luang cave on June 23 after heavy rains flooded the inside.

Rescuers found them nine days later perched on rocks in a small air pocket. They initially thought they could be held there until October while they planned their evacuation, but volatile weather conditions prompted them to swing into action.

Discovery Channel's Thai Cave Rescue special shows Thai soldiers relaying electric cable deep into the Tham Luang cave Picture: LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA/AFP/Getty Images)

Thai authorities and the international community carried out the mammoth mission, where expert divers were required to extract the team from the waterlogged cave.

And while heavy rains and rapidly depleting oxygen meant the odds were stacked against them, rescuers achieved the unimaginable, and the entire team were safely escorted out of the cave in two stages.

* Operation Thai Cave Rescue airs 8.30pm, Thursday on Foxtel’s Discovery Channel.

Originally published as Thai cave rescue: Discovery Channel to take viewers inside dramatic operation