Tham Luang cave rescue

Historical eventJune 232018

Tham Luang cave rescue

Twelve boys and an assistant coach from a soccer team in Thailand are trapped in a flooding cave, leading to an 18-day rescue operation.

Photo: U.S. Air Force Capt. Jessica Tait 353rd Special Operations Group Public Affairs · Public domain

In context

When
Saturday, June 23 20188 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
21st century · 2010s
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

At a glance

Dates: 2018-06-23 – 2018-07-10.

Place: Tham Luang, Thailand.

Type: caving incident and rescue operation.

Deaths reported: 1.

What came before

Background and disappearance Doi Nang Non , known among Thais as the "Mountain of the Sleeping Lady". When viewed from this angle, it is said to resemble a woman lying on her back. Tham Luang Nang Non is a karstic cave complex beneath Doi Nang Non , a mountain range on the border between Thailand and Myanmar . [ 1 ] The cave system is 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) long and has many deep recesses, narrow passages and tunnels winding under hundreds of metres of limestone strata.

Who was involved

Involved: Richard Stanton, John Volanthen, Naval Special Warfare Command (Thailand), Narongsak Osottanakorn, Saman Gunan, Craig Challen, and Richard Harris.

What happened

In June 2018, a junior football team became trapped in Tham Luang Nang Non, a cave system in Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand. Twelve members of the team, aged 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old assistant coach entered the cave on 23 June after a practice session. Shortly after they entered, heavy rainfall began and partially flooded the cave system, blocking their way out and trapping them deep within.

June 23 through the years

Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.

  1. 1994NASA
  2. 20012001 southern Peru earthquake
  3. 2005Reddit
  4. 2012Ashton Eaton
  5. 2013Nik Wallenda
  6. 2013Nanga Parbat
  7. 2014Syrian chemical weapons program
  8. 2016Brexit
  9. 20162016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum
  10. 2017June 2017 Pakistan attacks
  11. 2018Tham Luang cave rescue

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Everything we record for 2018 →

Sources

Cite this page

“Tham Luang cave rescue”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/tham-luang-cave-rescue-2018-june-23, accessed October 27, 2026.

Cite the underlying source as well — the source links above go to the record this entry is adapted from.

Questions about this entry

When did Tham Luang cave rescue happen?

June 23 2018 — 8 years ago, on a Saturday.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.

How do I cite this page?

Use the ready-made citation near the sources at the bottom of the page, and follow the source link to cite the underlying record as well.

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