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Rescuing Chilean Miners Could Take Months

   VOA News 23 August 2010
   Trucks  carrying drilling equipment arrive to the collapsed mine where
   33 miners are trapped in Copiapo, 23 Aug 2010

Photo: AP

   Trucks  carrying drilling equipment arrive to the collapsed mine where
   33 miners are trapped in Copiapo, 23 Aug 2010

   Rescue   workers   in   Chile  are  preparing  food,  medications  and
   communication  devices  to  send  down  to 33 trapped miners, who were
   found  to  be  alive Sunday and could have a long wait before they are
   rescued. Â
   Officials  say  it  could  take up to four months to reach the men who
   have  been trapped for more than two weeks in a mine near the northern
   city of Copiapo. Â
   After discovering the miners were alive Sunday, engineers began making
   plans  to  drill  a  rescue  tunnel through nearly 700 meters of solid
   rock.
   Authorities  say  the  depth  of  the  gold  and  copper mine, and the
   instability  caused  by  the  shaft  collapse, will force them to work
   slowly.
   Authorities  plan  to  send  a  microphone  down  a 15-centimeter-wide
   borehole so they can speak to the miners.
   Joyous  families are also writing letters to boost the morale of their
   loved ones.
   Chile's  President  Sebastian  Pinera announced Sunday that the miners
   were alive after 17 days underground.  He showed reporters a note the
   miners had written saying they were well.
   The  miners  attached  the  note  to the end of a drill probe that had
   reached their emergency refuge deep underground.
   A  video camera lowered down the narrow 700-meter-long hole showed the
   miners with their shirts off because of the heat.
   The miners became trapped following a shaft collapse on August 5.  It
   is  not  clear  what  caused the collapse.  The mine has a history of
   accidents and was reopened after having been closed in recent years.
   Chile is the world's largest copper supplier.

   Â

   Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

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