Good news for the anxious families of miners in northern Chilie, 33 of them are still alive. The miners were able to send up a message on paper declaring, "the 33 of us in the shelter are well". Unfortunately, it will take a long time to reach the miners trapped 2,300 feet below ground. However, knowledge of a "happy ending" seems to be worth waiting for. The discovery of the note resulted in an exuberant uproar from listeners who honked their car horns and cheered in restaurants. The mine is unstable though, so the focus now is to construct a new shaft to allow the miners to escape, possibly taking 120 days to complete. Mining accidents this severe are rare for Chile, however, this particular company seems to have had quite a few problems over the past few years with 16 workers killed. I really think mining should be converted to complete mechanical control as soon as possible to avoid future accidents like this one where human lives are threatened in addition to raising safety standards in the meantime.
Article Referenced:
Reuters. "Trapped Chilean Miners Send Message". NYTimes. New York Times. 22 August. Web. 29 August.
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