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Thailand’s cave boys wake up at home for first time in weeks

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CHIANG RAI Thailand's rescued cave boys woke up in their own homes for the first time in more than three weeks yesterday, with many rising at dawn to take part in a religious ceremony.

The 12 boys, aged 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old football coach were discharged from a hospital in the northern province of Chiang Rai on Wednesday and later made their first public appearance.

During a national TV broadcast they smiled, joked and showed solidarity with one another, as they shared details of their traumatic experience inside the flooded Tham Luang cave complex.

Many of the boys hail from the sleepy district of Mae Sai, near the border with Myanmar. Some were greeted with hugs, tears and smiles from waiting relatives and friends when they returned home on Wednesday. Others were blessed with water as they entered their homes.

Yesterday, some of the boys and their relatives took part in religious ceremonies at Mae Sai's Wat Pha That Doi Wao temple - an ancient temple with scenic views of the surrounding countryside.

Reporters were not allowed close to the boys and their families at the temple.

The last of the group of 13 were brought out of the cave last Tuesday, ending a gruelling 18-day ordeal that claimed the life of Saman Kunan, a volunteer diver and former Thai Navy Seal who was helping with the rescue mission.

Saman died on July 6 after losing consciousness during a mission to place oxygen tanks deep inside the cave, two days before the first boys were brought out safely. - REUTERS

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