Eyes rolled when Elon Musk announced his plan to send a mini submarine to Thailand to assist in the rescue of a boys’ soccer team trapped in a flooded cave.
All 12 members of the soccer team and their 25-year-old coach were rescued from the cave — without the assistance of Musk’s mini submarine.
He left his contraption in Thailand “in case it may be useful in the future.”
Thai officials said Musk’s mini submarine was “good technology but not practical for this mission”.
But others weren’t so kind. Some in the tech industry accused Musk of inserting himself in the rescue for attention-grabbing headlines.
Hurt and dismayed, Musk took to Twitter.com on Wednesday to defend his decision.
“This reaction has shaken my opinion of many people. We were asked to create a backup option & worked hard to do so. Checked with dive team many times to confirm it was worthwhile. Now it’s there for anyone who needs it in future. Something’s messed up if this is not a good thing.”
He also posted an email to prove he was asked by someone to insert himself in the rescue operation.
But others pointed out that the luxury carmaker ignored the layout of the cave when he proposed sending the submarine. The most challenging section of the cave is only 15 inches across — equivalent to 3 Mars candy bars placed end to end.
Clearly Musk didn’t think his plan through — beyond his insatiable need for attention.
Photo by Mark Brake/Getty Images
