Director of Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park Management Board, revealed that the newly-found caves have never been announced before, and are located in the buffer zone communes of Minh Hoa district.

According to the information of each cave’s location by local residents, rangers and officials from the national park organised independent surveys, without the participation of the British Cave Research Association (BCRA).

Using the initial recognition method, then comparing cave data that the BCRA experts have identified and then eliminating duplicate caves, the final list of 58 new cave records has been compiled and published for the first time.

Among the 58 caves, some are big and valuable, noting that many caves might have been used by Vietnamese soldiers in the wartime because the park's staff have found some objects such as cartridge cases there.

Some caves have been surveyed by the staff of Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park, but most have not been explored yet due to limited technical conditions.

The profiles of the 58 caves will be transferred to the BCRA to continue surveying in the near future and details will be published when the survey team have discovered the size of each cave.

The Phong Nha - Ke Bang system belongs to the districts of Quang Ninh, Bo Trach, and Minh Hoa in Quang Binh province. Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park was declared a World Natural Heritage by UNESCO twice in July 2003 and July 2015. It is also home to the world’s largest cave, Son Doong.

It now has a total of more than 350 caves, which have been discovered over the past 25 years. More than 30 of the caves have been exploited for tourism activities, especially the most famous caves such as En Cave and the world’s largest cave, Son Doong.

By Nhu Y
(Source: Quang Binh Portal)