On 7 Dec, a 77-year-old monk went missing from a temple in Loei Province, Thailand.
His disappearance prompted a large-scale search involving officials, rescue teams, and villagers.
The monk, identified as Somchai (name transliterated from Thai), was found several days later, trapped in a rock crevice 2 kilometres away from the temple.
Source: สมาคมกู้ภัยนเรศวรหนองบัวลำภู Naresuan Rescue Association on Facebook
Rescue teams discovered the elderly man inside a cave on Pha Sawan Mountain in Suan Hin Pha Ngam Forest Park.
Somchai was found wedged in a narrow rock crevice in the third chamber of the cave.
Source: สมาคมกู้ภัยนเรศวรหนองบัวลำภู Naresuan Rescue Association on Facebook
The elderly man was injured, with scratches on his body from the sharp rocks.
He was also frail and severely emaciated after being trapped for days with little air or light.
Rescuers spent more than three hours carefully freeing the monk from the crevice.
The operation to retrieve the monk from the cave, which had a vertical drop of about 30 metres and ended in a tight, dead-end chamber, required specialised rescue teams.
Source: สมาคมกู้ภัยนเรศวรหนองบัวลำภู Naresuan Rescue Association on Facebook
The monk has received further treatment at the hospital, with his condition now stable.
Authorities believe the monk fell into the crevice when he attempted to enter the cave.
Also read: 40 kindergarteners & teachers trapped in M’sia cave during flash flood, rescued after 2 hours
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Featured image adapted from สมาคมกู้ภัยนเรศวรหนองบัวลำภู Naresuan Rescue Association on Facebook.