I didn't see any posts here about ongoing rescue of the miners in Chile, maybe it is not being covered much in the US. I am in Chile now, it has been non-stop coverage since yesterday.
What is amazing to me is that they had to drill more than 2000 feet, and hit a chamber (as opposed to reaching solid rock at that depth). It tells me two things:
1) the mine survey must have been pretty good (i.e. they are aiming for a coordinate)
2) they must be able to guide the drill (and know where it is going) accurately. The drill shaft that they are rescuing the miners from is inclined both at the surface and underground.
The pics from underground are amazing.
Also note that the drillers are from the US.
FoxNews started covering it in detail long before the first guy came. I've been following it since. When that first guy came out I cheered then dropped on bent knee and thanked God. #19 is coming out of the ground as I type.
E
Been watching live coverage here. I can't believe that they are in such remarkably good health. I heard that all they had to eat was 2 tablespoons of tuna, 2 crackers, and 6 ounces of water every 48 hrs. It must be an unbelievable feeling to be on the surface again...
The first 17 days that was all they had to eat. During that time hope to ever find them alive was fading. Then, a 5" shaft reached them, and they have been eating somewhat "normally" ever since then. They didn't want them to eat too much or they might not fit into the chamber.
For anyone who has ever been underground, it is an amazing story.
Somehow I missed Richard's post.
Howdy Mr. Hamilton,
Yes, it is a great achievement. I have not seen coverage of the issue of how the subsurface location's coordinates were determined.
I imagine the pisco is flowing freely.
I spent a little time in Santiago years ago. I did a GPS project based on the (then) CIGNET site SANT. I even visited with the operators. People were nice, scenery lovely and the work was enjoyable. Never got a chance to visit much beyond the capital.
Hope you enjoy yourself.
Keep warm.
Cheers,
DMM
News was breaking in to regular programming on my local radio station this morning as each miner was brought up.
I'm sure it's all you're hearing about down there, but it's a pretty big story here as well. Even though it hasn't been a top story much of the time, it's also pretty much stayed in the news cycle for the past 70 days, hearing about new developments as they happened.
Amazing story. God was watching out for those guys.
It's been non-stop coverage here since late last night.
Just to be fair, while the hole that the rig is being pulled through was the American-led team, not all the drillers are from the USA. There are Canadians, Brazilians and Bolivians and numerous other workers involved.
The head driller, Denver resident Jeff Hart, was flown in from Afghanistan in August to lead the effort by Geotec Boyles Bros., a U.S.-Chilean company. The winch system was designed by an Austrian firm, and the capsule was a joint design by NASA and the Chilean Navy.
Among all the good feelings as the rescue continues, there is coming strife. 27 of the 33 workers have filed a $10 million negligence lawsuit against the owners of the mine. A lawsuit against government regulators is also being planned.
Also, one miner who may not be so happy to be rescued is Yonni Barrios Rojas, who has both a wife and girlfriend waiting for him above ground. They each learned about the others existence when both turned up to claim compensation because he was trapped in the mine. Wife and girlfriend almost came to blows some weeks ago.
Just as an ironic side note, tomorrow will mark the 23rd anniversary of the day that "Baby" Jessica McClure fell down a well in Midland, Texas. If anyone remembers, this is one event that may have had the most effect on the new CNN cable station, and the beginnings of a 24 hour news cycle.
A live feed from MSNBC is here:
I remember
I've seen diagrams of how Baby Jessica was wedged in that hole. I don't think I would have survived that ordeal in her spot.
Also in the news is the story of the other miners (including some who barely escaped the collapsing tunnel) who are unemployed but receiving no help.
It's amazing how the foreman kept them going the 17 days before they were discovered. They really had no reason to hope they would be found until they were found.
I remember
On March 26, 2011, when Jessica McClure Morales turns 25, she stands to receive a trust fund of donations from well-wishers, rumored to be in excess of $1,000,000.
Could it have been faith in God that kept them going? Not the works they had done, just simple faith.
jud
Dave
What choice did they have? I mean, I haven't heard of any reports saying that there is cyanide at the bottom of each shaft for them to take.
There was no choice but to keep on keeping on.
Dave
Kris, they had many choices. One might of been, you are breathing my air and may ham started, or you are getting my share of tuna, no there were many choices that they all made. They were a strong people, made the right decisions and survived because of those choices.
jud
jud
I just don't see anything else being a choice. Faith makes you make the right choices, for the most part.
Dave
they could've simply given up and laid down and died.
Obiously they didn't. Their basic desire for survival did not fail them.
John.
A western Australian provided the expertise and surveying direction equipment to drill so accurately . His company were involved with drilling on adjacent mines in Chile and were brought in as there was no drilling program in the mine.
He initially tried to drill down from holes already started but found it was too tedious at 1 metre an hour to reckon position, so convinced them to start drilling again . Hence the speed up in time to get the a precisely drilled hole.
RADU
I saw only the first few coming out of the hoist.
It is good that they looked so well including being clean shaved, neat and tidy etc.
After that period of time their personal hygiene must have been a challenge.
Cheers to all who were on Team Rescue !
Derek
> What is amazing to me is that they had to drill more than 2000 feet, and hit a chamber (as opposed to reaching solid rock at that depth). It tells me two things:
> 1) the mine survey must have been pretty good (i.e. they are aiming for a coordinate)
> 2) they must be able to guide the drill (and know where it is going) accurately.
I, too, find it remarkable that they can control the drill bit that accurately. Nevertheless, we cannot be surprised. We just finished following the gulf spill story, where they drilled a few thousand feet from a floating platform 20,000 feet above and intersected another drill hole.
As for the mine survey, the first few exploratory holes they drilled missed the underground chamber altogether, and when they finally did get through they didn't realize it until they withdrew the bit and found handwritten notes stuck to it.
All Done, Last Miner Is UP
Prayers do get answered.
Paul in PA
"Long Live Chile - Dammit"
"Long Live Chile Dammit"
