Rescuers begin drilling rescue shaft

Chilean rescuers began drilling a shaft at the San Jose mine on Monday to rescue 33 miners who have been trapped deep underground for 25 days. A video of the miners has been shown to loved ones and the first personal conversations were made possible by radio-telephone.

Photo: Reuters/Chilean Mining Ministry

A hydraulic bore will drill a hole measuring 66 centimetres wide and 702 metres long, which will allow rescuers to pull out the miners one at a time from the underground shelter.

“The situation has improved slightly since they managed to move up to a higher level of the shelter, not as damp and muddy as their previous location,” Carlos Garcia, an official from the National Emergency Bureau official told RFI.

Early government estimates suggest it could take three to four months to complete the rescue.

The miners will also have to help in their own escape by clearing thousands of tons of rock that will fall as the hole is drilled. Failure to do so could mean that the debris could quickly plug the shaft.

Monday marks a record set by three miners who survived 25 days trapped in a flooded mine in southern China last year. Other mining accident rescues have not taken more than two weeks.

The men only made contact with the outside after 17 days – during which they rationed 48-hours worth of food and dug for water in the ground.

A number of other options are still being considered by local authorities, including drilling at the main entrance ramp to the mine.

Another alternative would be to broaden an existing shaft 12 centimetres in diameter, about 300 metres from the emergency shelter where the miners are confined.

Geotec, the company who own the drilling equipment, believe that expanding that shaft would free the men in about 60 days, two months ahead of early estimates.

However, Mining Minister Laurence Golborne on Sunday rejected reports of a possible rescue within the next month. Golborne said that experts had analysed 10 different ways to get the men out and will continue to study other options, but that “nothing has yet been found that will be quicker”.

Golborne said that alongside the main rescue operation, engineers would also be widening a third existing shaft to the miners’ shelter from 10.2 centimetres to 30.5 so bigger objects can be sent down to them.

On Sunday the trapped miners spoke to their loved ones for the first time in brief conversations via radio-telephone.

Limited to one minute per miner, wives, mothers and fathers lined up for their first personal contact since they were trapped.

A new video of the 33 men showed them breaking into tears and expressing their gratitude for the support they received with each of the 12 men on camera talking for around 30 seconds.