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Aug. 23, 2010 For over two weeks, relatives and friends of thirty three trapped miners camped outside the entrance to the mine San Jose in the harsh Atacama desert. Their hope was to hear news of the men trapped 2300 feet below the surface. The mine was considered too unstable for rescuers to dig their way in. The only viable solution was to bore vertical shafts and hope to reach the exact spot where the miners were most likely to be. Two weeks later, the miners had not been found. Three probes had failed, one had reached an open space but no signs of survivors. The search teams estimated a two percent chance of finding survivors. Chile's President Sebastian Piñera said the government would not stop its efforts until every single body was found. This was a bold statement. To achieve this goal would require one of the greatest digs the world has ever seen. The president's commitment was political suicide if the rescue failed.. The last probe, digging a hole about three inches in diameter, was expected to reach the area where the miners could have sheltered on Sunday. In the morning, the probe was raised to the surface, As the last feet of cable were cleaned, a splotch of red paint appeared, then a yellow one! Tied to the drill bit, a ziplock bag contained several scraps of paper. The message in the bag would travel around the world. ALL 33 ARE ALIVE. A video and audio probe was sent down. The audio failed but the video captured images of the miners who after seventeen days trapped seemed in remarkable good condition. The tiny hole, once reinforced by a tube, will allow to lower containers no wider than a condensed milk can to the miners and to pump air. The miners ordeal is far from over. Sunday night a large convoy of trucks from CODELCO Chile's, giant mining company, got underway with rescue equipment. The rescuers will dig another vertical shaft, wide enough to fit a cage with wheels so it will not get stuck in the shaft. This cage, two feet in diameter, will remove the miners one at a time. Each trip to the surface will take one hour. Many things can go wrong, stones and rock can block the probe shaft, which is the lifeline for the miners. As a contingency, several other shafts are planned. It will take a long time for the rescue shaft to be completed. The digging equipment bores down, collects a ton of rock and must be pulled out. The advance of this equipment is approximately ten meters a day (30 feet). Equipment will break down. Nearly a thousand metric tons or rock will have to be removed. Rescue experts say they hope to have the miners out by Christmas. This developing story is about human endurance, courage and a miracle. Last night there was dancing at the camp. As the news spread, people cheered in public places and car horns beeped on the streets.
The next few days are critical. The job of keeping the miners alive is just beginning, the shaft connecting them to the world is still a fragile link.
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