The story of Ben Reymenants

If you have been following the news about the rescue operation in the Tham Luang, you are already somewhat familiar with Ben Reymenants. On June 30, an article appeared on this blog about this Belgian professional diver, who has a diving company in Rawai, Phuket, see https://www.thailandblog.nl/achtergrond/belgische-duiker-actief-reddingsoperatie-chiang-rai  Ben now regularly appears with words and images in reports on television and other media.

Thanks in part to Ben Reymenants and his diving buddies, the 12 young football players and their coach were located somewhere in the cave and the rescue mission could focus on bringing the group of young men back safely.

After returning from Chiang Rai on Tuesday, July 3, and despite sleeping very little for the past five days, Reymenants kindly spoke to The Phuket News about the rescue mission and his involvement. This is the sometimes somewhat free translation: .

The beginning

It was on the evening of June 27 that Reymenants received a phone call from a liaison officer with the Royal Thai Navy asking if he could come and help them with the rescue operation.” I was called because of my expertise in caves, if you can call it that ,” explained Reymenants. “We have a technical diving training facility in Rawai and specialize in deep cave exploration using specialized compact life support systems that allow us to go further and deeper than conventional diving,” he said. “I think I was closest to the site,[so that's why I got called and called. AirAsia organized the flight for myself and 85 kilos of diving equipment,” he added.

In person

Once he arrived at the site, Reymenants said his main objective was to lay a thick static climbing rope around the 2,5-mile stretch from Camp 3 to the “Pattaya Beach” area, where they suspected that the children were, to connect with each other.

“This was of course pure speculation as they had no idea if the team was actually in one of the dry chambers when the cave started to float due to sudden rainfall.

“There were basically two options: if they made it in time, they would be on Pattaya Beach or 200 meters away in another smaller space. These spaces are known to remain dry during the monsoon and contain enough oxygen for several months. Fresh water also drips from the stalactites of the cave roof,” Reymenants explained.

Difficult start of the operation

In the beginning there was a feeling of nervousness and frustration among the team members because it was very difficult to make progress. “The Royal Thai Navy and the local electricity authority had prepared equipment for radio communication and lighting in the restricted area 800 meters from Pattaya Beach. But more rain suddenly caused the water to rise at a rate of 30 inches per hour and they had to hastily retreat about a mile to an area now called Camp 3,” Reymenants added.

Particularly heavy

The conditions in the cave made the operation particularly difficult in the first days. “It felt like climbing Mount Everest,” said Ben, “We had to fight wild rapids followed by multiple climbs up rocky muddy slopes.

“When we finally got to the water at Camp 3, the visibility was only 5 cm at the most, barely enough to read our instruments. There was also a strong current and after only about 200 meters I got stuck in a small space with a strong counter current, so I decided to turn back,” said Ben.

Get on

“On the way back I met the British cave team, who also had doubts and we decided to report that the rescue would be unsafe in these conditions. However, when we heard the next day that the Navy SEALs would try anyway, using conventional diving equipment and with little cave experience, I decided it would be better if I continued too, against the advice of the British cave divers.

Motivation

“Surprisingly, the water level had dropped, the current was less strong and the visibility had improved to about 1 meter. The Thai Navy SEALs hit a dead end and turned back. I decided to at least give it a try with my dive buddy Maksym Polejaka.

“We then found another passage and were able to lay 200 meters of lines in the right direction. Motivated by this, the British divers decided to go back and they also laid several hundred meters of line,” explained Reymenants.

“The next day, using a 30-year-old map from French explorers and a hint from a local British geologist, we connected the T-section through the main tunnel with the passage to Pattaya beach

The breakthrough

“Right after we made the connection to the last lap, the British team went in and managed to bridge the last gap, they swam a bit beyond Pattaya Beach and found the kids in the last space. They shot the video and immediately returned with the good news.

Feast

“I was still in my wet diving suit and immediately returned to where the British were. What happened next I can only describe as a great party full of people cheering and crying. Everyone happy, I even got a hug from a naval admiral,” said Reymenants.

The sequel

Reymenants modestly said that what he and the team had accomplished was only a small step, but the biggest task was yet to come: getting the guys out safely. “Half a dozen countries have sent their military experts with equipment, full face masks, communication systems, food, etc., but the question is still; we teach them to dive – they can't even swim – and guide them through what is called an extremely complex and dangerous cave system.

“Hope is high, but there is still a long way to go.”

Source: The Phuket News