Update: Laos rescuers free first of seven gold prospectors (opens in new tab)

Rescue divers evacuated the first of five villagers found alive in a flooded cave in central Laos’ Xaisomboun province Friday night, more than a week after floodwaters trapped them underground. Four other men who had been found alive remained inside, and two others were still missing. The seven had entered the cave to look for gold or other valuable minerals before flash flooding blocked their exit. Lao and Thai rescuers and international cave-diving specialists worked through narrow, flooded...