Boys found alive in cave - An inspirational will to survive

The discovery of 12 boys, aged 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old football coach alive in a Thailand cave after they had been missing for nine days is the very epitome of a very good, good human interest news story.

The tremendous bravery shown by the international rescue workers and the redemption made possible by, presumably, the boys' coach's leadership combine in a way that would warm the very coldest heart.

The story's cheer and uplift reach beyond the limitations of geography or culture. It is an inspiring feat of human endurance and survival, one we instinctively celebrate.

Though their ordeal is far from over the teenagers and their coach are in a far better position than they were just days ago.

Thailand's military authorities have warned that they could be stuck in the cave "for months" as extraction from the site is more than difficult.

In one of life's great ironies, as we bake in a drought, they are caught in a race with the fast-approaching rainy season which will raise water levels in the cave making escape even more difficult than it already is.

Engineers are removing 10,000 litres of water an hour, lowering the cave's water level by a centimetre every hour but rains will slow that rate.