two cave divers embark on the remarkable rescue of 13 people from a flooded cave system Thailand have received honorary degrees.
The operation led by John Volanthen, from Bristoland Rick Stanton, from Coventryhas been described as one of the greatest saves of all time.
The unlikely heroes were turned on by the Thai Government after heavy rain, 12 members of a junior football team and their assistant coach were stranded in a cave complex in the north of the country.
The rescue involved 5,000 people, with Mr Volanthen and Mr Stanton leading the risky searches.
The pair had to navigate 1.5 miles (2.5 km) of narrow underwater passageways, in near zero visibility, against a fast-flowing, debris-strewn stream.
On July 2, 2018, nine days after the search began, the 12 stranded boys and their coach were found.
But as the oxygen in their tiny air sac dwindles and more monsoon rains are forecast, time is running out.
Mr Volanthen said: “Having operated under difficult circumstances, I was reasonably confident that I could manage my own safety.
“It was extremely dangerous for the boys. Trying to get them out was something that hadn’t been done before.”
With the help of an anesthesiologist, the boys and their coach were given each anesthetic ketamine, the anti-anxiety drug Xanax, and atropine, which slow the heart rate and reduce salivation.
For several hours, the unconscious boys were dragged out of the submerged cavern and squeezed by Mr. Volanthen, Mr. Stanton, and a team of cave divers.
Despite having little medical training, they had to inject the boys multiple times with the drug mix to keep them sedated during the rescue.
Any failure of breathing apparatus could have drowned the unconscious boys, and the wrong dose of the drug could have caused them to wake up and panic — or fall asleep forever.
If something had gone wrong, they could have ended up in a Thai court.
Mr Stanton said: “It was unprecedented, nothing really compares. People call it one of the greatest saves of all time.
“It was two and a half weeks long and you had to think outside the box. We were literally writing the procedures, there was no manual – this had never been done before.”
The pair both received George Medals for the rescue and have now received honorary degrees from the University of Bristol.
Linda Wilson, vice president of the university’s Spelaeological Society, nominated Mr. Volanthen and Mr. Stanton for their honorary degrees.
“Rick, John and the other rescue divers were asked to complete an impossible task,” she said.
“Fortunately, through a combination of extraordinary courage and meticulous planning, they overcame all odds and managed to pull off one of the most extraordinary saves ever attempted, in the end with all 12 boys and their coach getting out alive. brought, despite the most dangerous circumstances imaginable.
“No one can better exemplify the values this university extols—resilience, courage and outstanding skills—than Rick and John, who would save the lives of so many others, risking their own lives daily during the 15 days of this massive rescue attempt that captured the world’s attention.”
The couple plans to go diving together near Bristol the day after graduation.