Army Soldier Receives MBE For Thailand Cave Rescue

A British Army soldier who helped rescue 12 schoolchildren and their football coach from a flooded cave in Thailand has received an MBE.

Lance Corporal Connor Roe, from Royal Electrical Mechanical Engineers (REME), was part of a team of divers who saved the group from rising waters in July 2018.

They launched a mission to rescue the boys and their 25-year-old coach, which finished after an 18-day ordeal.

LCpl Roe is a Cave Dive Group qualified diver who built up his caving and cave diving experience during his career in the REME, including leading a multi-group expedition to one of the deepest caves in Europe.

He spoke to Forces News about how the incident changed his life.

"We're the lucky few to be in this position, but so many people were the ones that got us into that position to be able to help these boys.

"It's a real privilege to see the good that it's done.

"It's brought a lot of positive light towards caving and cave diving, but it's been a whirlwind of activities that we never could have imagined.

"I naively thought I'd just come home and carry on with life as normal, but it's crazy to look back on it."

Also honoured at the Palace was Joshua Bratchley, who was also part of the rescue efforts.

"We know each other well, so it was a no-brainer working as a team with him [LCpl Roe]," he said.

"Being a good team and knowing each other helps a lot.

"It was bad visibility [in the cave], very bad visibility, the route through was not a conventional kind of route."

The operation claimed the life of Thai navy diver Saman Kunan, who died while replenishing oxygen canisters.

The rescue was particularly treacherous because the boys, aged 11 to 16, had to swim through tight spaces despite having no diving experience.