• Submitted by: manso
• international
• 10 / 10 / 2010

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10/08/2010. Relatives of the 33 miners trapped underground in northern Chile are anxiously awaiting as the rescue shaft being dug nears the refuge where the men have been surviving since August 5.

Although Mining Minister Laurence Golborne said on Thursday that the T-130 drill, known as Plan B, would arrive at its destination on Saturday, technicians and rescue workers say it could reach the refuge as early as Friday.

Between Friday and Saturday, it must also be decided whether or not to encase the shaft. If the shaft is encased, the rescue might take eight days; if not, it could take only two or three, said Golborne.

Despite the optimism prevailing at the site of the San José mine in the Atacama desert, the rescue operation's chief engineer, André Sougarret, explained that all precautions must be taken for the last few meters before reaching the miners, given the characteristics of rock in that depth. It is a difficult phase, he said.

As part of final preparations, an evacuation and rescue drill took place on Thursday around the mine, where Air Force helicopters left for the northern Chilean city of Copiapo to gauge how long it would take to transport the miners to the nearest hospitals.

Source: PL