CHIANG RAI, Thailand — The agonizing wait to save a soccer team of young boys and their coach trapped inside a cave in northern Thailand continues as those in charge mull the best time — and the best way — to undertake the rescue mission.

Steady rain began falling on Saturday evening, but the monsoon downpours looming in the forecast have yet to materialize. With water levels inside the massive Tham Luang cave easing thanks to draining efforts, authorities have been focusing on reducing the dangers of the rescue operation as much as possible until heavy rain or toxic air inside the cave force them to act.

A bid to rescue the members of the Wild Boars soccer team looks imminent as conditions now “most suitable” for evacuation, according to Narongsak Osottanakorn, the governor of Chiang Rai province. The boys and their coach have been stuck inside the cave for more than 15 days.

Reliable information is hard to come by in the camp of hundreds that has sprung up around the cave entrance. The question fueling days of speculation remains the same: Will a rescue take place over the next few hours or the next couple of days?

“Today it rained but the water level is still at a satisfactory level,” Osottanakorn told reporters at a press briefing on Saturday morning. “[The next] three to four days from now is the most favorable time for the operation and rescue mission using one of the action plans. If we wait too long, we don’t know how much rainwater will come.”