IN PHOTOS: Rescue teams slog through mud, pouring rain to reach boys trapped in Thai cave

Rescue teams have slogged through mud and pouring rain, battling the elements for over 10 days in an effort to save 12 schoolboys and their soccer coach trapped deep in a flooded Thai cavern.

A multinational operation continued Wednesday to rescue the group after they disappeared in the cavern on June 23 after a post-practice outing went awry, prompting the high-profile search and rescue effort.

News that the team had been found alive Monday sparked relief, celebrations and an outpouring of praise in a country transfixed by the drama and its blanket media coverage.

In this July 3, 2018 image taken from video provided by the Royal Thai Navy Facebook Page, a Thai boy smiles as Thai Navy SEAL medic help injured children inside a cave in Mae Sai, northern Thailand. Royal Thai Navy Facebook Page via AP

While efforts to pump out floodwaters are continuing, some Thai officials have indicated that heavy rains forecast for this weekend could force them to decide the boys should swim and dive out using the same complicated route of narrow passageways through which their rescuers entered.

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In this July 3, 2018 image taken from video provided by the Thai Navy Seal, Thai boys are with Navy SEALs inside the cave, Mae Sai, northern Thailand. Thai Navy Seal via AP

Divers, medics, and Thai navy SEALS were providing the young men with medicines and food while experts assessed conditions for getting them out safely, a task the government said would not be easy.

“The water is very strong and space is narrow. Extracting the children takes a lot of people,” Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan told reporters.

Coverage of the Thai boys trapped in a cave on Globalnews.ca:

Click to play video: 'New video shows doctors treating boys stuck inside cave in Thailand'

2:59 New video shows doctors treating boys stuck inside cave in Thailand

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“Now we are teaching the children to swim and dive,” he said, adding that if water levels fell and the flow weakened, they would be taken out quickly.

Photos of the operation show teams slogging through the elements over the last 11 days. Here’s a look.