Good News! The coal miners are ALIVE!
TV ClubHouse: archives: Good News! The coal miners are ALIVE!
Seamonkey | Saturday, July 27, 2002 - 09:14 pm     I'm just so happy to hear some good news! I had been following this of course,and while watching BB tonight, would flip over to CNN, Fox, MSNBC.. and during the last commercial break, found out the news. Almost hard to go back for the last minutes of that mostly ridiculous group of people. wahoo!! |
Twiggyish | Saturday, July 27, 2002 - 09:23 pm     Me too!! I was choked up watching it. |
Gail | Saturday, July 27, 2002 - 09:37 pm     Here's what was posted on AOL By JUDY LIN The Associated Press SOMERSET, Pa. (July 28) - Nine coal miners were found alive Saturday night after rescuers spent an agonizing three days drilling through 240 feet of earth to save them from a cramped and flooded mine shaft. After 72 frustrating hours, Gov. Mark Schweiker appeared before reporters and raised his fists over his head. ``All nine are alive,'' he said. ``And we believe that all nine are in pretty good shape.'' He said rescuers planned to begin the process of lowering a capsule to raise the miners from the shaft after the drill was removed. Schweiker said one of the miners reported feeling ``some heart stress'' and said the man would be evaluated. Dave Lauriski, assistant secretary of the Mine Safety and Health Administration, said the miners were in ``reasonably good'' condition. ``I can't give you any good estimate of how long this round trip's going to take,'' Lauriski said. The Sipesville Fire Hall, where the families had been gathering, erupted in celebration. Families cried and hugged and many were in the street with hands in the air. ``Wow. Wow. Wow. It's just unbelievable,'' said mine worker Lou Lepley, who has been staffing the mine entrance for three days. ``I have no words.'' Rescuers were seen hugging and giving the thumbs-up sign soon after dropping a telephone line into the shaft. The word came from an unidentified, mud-caked rescue worker who shouted up from the pit near where they dropped the communication device: ``They're all down there. They're waiting to come up. There's nine of them. We talked to them on the telephone,'' After three days of desperate drilling, a giant auger broke through at about 10:16 p.m. to the dark and cramped chamber where the miners had been trapped since 9 p.m. Wednesday. The miners became trapped in the flooded Quecreek Mine at about 9 p.m. Wednesday, when they inadvertently broke into an abandoned, water-filled mine that maps showed to be 300 feet away. Rescue workers had remained optimistic the miners were alive, even though there had been no contact with them since midday Thursday, when tapping was heard on an air hole. ``If there's any slogan (among the rescue workers) it's 'nine-for-nine,''' Schweiker said before the drill broke through. ``We're bringing up nine of our guys.'' Dozens of family members had kept a vigil at a nearby fire hall and had made several trips to the rescue site. Officials met with them every hour to keep them apprised. Reaching the men, who were believed to be in a 4-foot high chamber, was sometimes painfully slow. Drilling a rescue shaft to the men, age 30 to 55, didn't begin until more than 20 hours after the accident, because workers had to wait for a drill rig to arrive from West Virginia. And drilling was halted early Friday morning because a 1,500-pound drill bit broke after hitting hard rock about 100 feet down. A second rescue shaft was started and it wasn't until Saturday that measurable progress was being made on both shafts. Pumps had been draining the mine of some 50 to 60 million gallons of water for days, but it was not known how much, if any, water had been in the chamber where the miners were believed to be. They suffered gut-wrenching setbacks, including a broken drill bit Friday that delayed the effort by 18 hours. The rescuers worked cautiously toward the miners because they feared compromising a hollowed-out section of coal seam believed to be about 4 feet high, which may have been partially flooded. Helicopters were standing by to whisk miners from the scene 55 miles southeast of Pittsburgh to hospitals, and medical personnel were set to immediately treat injuries or hypothermia. Nine decompression chambers also were at the scene. Medical personnel said the air pressure on the miners could be as much as is experienced at 40 feet underwater, and the men could suffer the bends - bubbles in the bloodstream caused by rapid changes in pressure - once they were rescued. Air had been pumped into the chamber at a temperature of more than 100 degrees in the hope that it would warm the men. Before the drill broke through, 30 feet of water had been drained from the mine, the amount needed to give the trapped men more room and ensure the pressure wouldn't cause water to rise when the ceiling was pierced. A cap was placed over the rescue shaft at the surface to ensure the chamber remained pressurized. The miners were trapped when they broke the wall of an abandoned mine that maps showed to be some 300 feet farther away. As much as 60 million gallons of water rushed into the shaft where they were working. The miners were able to warn a second crew, which escaped. The rescue attempt has transfixed the region, a hilly, rural area long dependent on coal and one that suffered tragedy during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The 40 passengers and crew on Flight 93 died when it was taken over by hijackers and crashed near Shanksville, about 10 miles from the mine. Schweiker said family members of Flight 93 victims sent an e-mail message to the families of the miners. 07/28/02 00:05 EDT
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Firebird05 | Saturday, July 27, 2002 - 10:29 pm     Yeah. Two are now out and the rest should be up in the next 2 1/2 hours. Great News!!!! |
Seamonkey | Saturday, July 27, 2002 - 11:03 pm     It is going well.. 5 are out!! All are very wet, but the doctor said that the warm air that was sent down may have saved the first guy out who was having chest pains (plus they said he was in good shape).. he's been airlifted to a trauma center. Still watching!! |
Nightcrawler | Saturday, July 27, 2002 - 11:03 pm     this is great to hear GOD was with them |
Tess | Saturday, July 27, 2002 - 11:25 pm     # 7 of the 9 is out. All are alive and being evaluated. They are wet and filthy but alive. This is absolutely amazing. |
Tess | Saturday, July 27, 2002 - 11:45 pm     The ninth miner is out and looks to be doing very well. |
Aria | Saturday, July 27, 2002 - 11:54 pm     This is truly amazing. I hope they are all well and are able to reunite with their families soon. |
Sunshinemiss | Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 02:23 am     Oh, thank God. Truly. I had been out for the evening and, as usual, checking in here for a few, and I am SO happy and grateful for the good news. Thanks for posting it! |
Abbynormal | Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 04:24 am     These mine accidents just break my heart. A few years ago 13 men were killed here in a mine cave-in. Have you ever seen the inside of these things? I admire the men who do this job tremendously. |
Halfunit | Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 08:50 am     Abby - I know what you're saying. I have cousins who used to work at the Morton Salt mine under Lake Erie just east of Cleveland. I for one would NOT want to work underneath a body of water of that magnitude, but they did for a while until they were laid off. The elevator ride just one way took over an hour... scary!! BTW, my cousinds both went on to find another job together - working at the local nuclear power plant. LOL, they just enjoy danger, no? |
Ketchuplover | Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 12:12 pm     This reminds me of baby Jessica. Anybody know whatever happened to her? |
Car54 | Sunday, July 28, 2002 - 02:23 pm     I woke up very early this morning and I can't tell you how happy I was to hear this news. My grandfather, 2 uncles and my cousin were all miners. My grandpa's parents both died when he was only 12 years old, and his older sister lied about his age so he could go to work to keep his family together. I think of that little boy in the dark...he worked in the mines for 55 years. My two uncles went in when they graduated from high school, and my cousin is still a miner. This story has been in my heart all week. So happy for the men and their families. |
Whit4you | Monday, July 29, 2002 - 08:58 am     I think it's so awesome that they made it out alive... after that drill bit broke I thought this was gonna be like the submarine guys ..... I watched the Real Player clip from one of the resqued minor's was choked up the whole time |
Sia | Tuesday, July 30, 2002 - 08:50 pm     Am I the only person who is annoyed by the fact that Pennsylvania Governor Schweiker is going to appear on Jay Leno's show tonight? My husband ovserved that Schweiker seemed to be hogging the spotlight during the rescue: he had the be the only one to break the good news to the families and then to the public. It seemed to me that he wanted to create a very memorable moment so that when people look back on the rescue they will just remember that it was Gov. Schweiker who made the announcement. Could he be trying to parlay this into greater recognition and future votes? Do today's politicians believe that appearing on television talk shows endears them to the public and that it's free publicity? |
Melfie1222 | Tuesday, July 30, 2002 - 09:17 pm     From what I understand, Gov Schweiker is not running for election, he was not elected to begin with. |
Sia | Tuesday, July 30, 2002 - 09:33 pm     I know, Melfie; he replaced the fella that Pres. Bush named to head Homeland Security (Tom Ridge?). Schweiker said that he isn't running for re-election; I applaud that! He is well-spoken and seems level-headed and sensible. I got my answer during the interview with Leno: he's job-hunting. Schweiker said his term is up in January and that he'd be returning to the corporate environment. Frankly, I'd far rather see a man like Mark Schweiker be the C.E.O. of a big corporation than one of the jokers who've been covering up losses with crooked accounting practices. This issue is of interest to me because my husband is an underground coal miner and made his observation when the fate of nine fellow miners was still quite uncertain; in fact, it looked pretty unlikely that they might still be alive. We are ecstatic that they were saved and my husband and I treat each other a little differently since the accident. It brings home the gravity of the danger he really is in every single shift. |
Melfie1222 | Tuesday, July 30, 2002 - 10:08 pm     Sia, wow, this whole ordeal must have scared both you and your husband. The important thing here is that all the miners involved in this are well or getting well. |
Sia | Tuesday, July 30, 2002 - 11:14 pm     It really did shake us up, Melfie. A rescue team from my hubby's mine was sent to the Quecreek site, but we don't know yet what role, if any, they actually played in the rescue. I have felt horribly guilty about the days that I've sent DH to work without sandwiches (my way of "punishing" him when he ticks me off!), even more guilty than I have normally felt since the thought of a mine disaster is always on our minds. It's an inherently dangerous job, and I tend to be a cynic, a skeptic, and a pessimist. (Gee, I'm fun!) DH was so weirded-out by the initial report that he didn't even tell me when he got home in the wee hours of Thursday morning; he'd heard the news, but just the briefest of details. He said the next morning when my stepmom-in-law called our house in tears to ask if my husband was trapped that he knew about the disaster but "didn't want to worry anyone." We watched the interview tonight on "Dateline" with the nine rescued miners; they all seem physically healthy, but seriously emotionally shaken. Some of them don't intend to return to their underground jobs, and I just don't blame them a bit. I've asked DH if he wants to quit, too, but he says he will stick it out to retirement. He actually likes the job and is glad to have work where the compensation is commensurate with his skill--after working for years in other jobs that just don't pay well at all. Please continue to pray for those miners and their families. For those men who have known no other work, finding employment that will allow them to maintain their standard of living may be difficult. They live in an area where the local economy is not in the greatest shape. For those who choose to return to their old job, they will need courage--and so will their families. Not an easy choice, certainly. |
Marysafan | Thursday, August 01, 2002 - 09:30 am     I also wathed that Dateline program, and was very moved by these men. I also come from a mining family. Both of my grandfathers, my Dad, my brothers, and all of my uncles were miners. In 1970, my dad was caught in a cave in. He was saved by one man who with a LOT of adrenaline was able to pull my father free by pulling on his arm. My Dad was saved, but his partner died. It took my Dad a long time to recover from his physical injuries...but even longer to recover from the emotional ones. The guilt that he survived and his partner didn't ...wore on him for years. My Dad never went back underground, but was able to reach retirement by accepting a surface job. I hope that these men are offered the same option. One thing that really got me was when, Blaine Mayhugh said that he kissed his wife goodbye every single day of his life...except one. He missed on that day of all days. I have to believe that gave him extra incentive to get back to her. These are incredibly courageous men. I am glad they ALL came out alive with relatively minor injuries. I wish them all the best. |
Sia | Thursday, August 01, 2002 - 10:20 am     Marysafan, Blaine was interviewed by David Letterman last night and I was really impressed by how composed and (seemingly) confident (not nervous!!) he seemed to be following the harrowing ordeal. I assumed that speaking in front of such a large live audience might make the young man unsettled, but he handled it just beautifully and very descriptively told the account of their four-day wait. Surprisingly, Letterman was quite restrained and treated Blaine and the interview with the utmost respect and gravity. Letterman can be so flippant sometimes and he often comes across, to me, as totally disinterested in some guests. I was very happy to see him treat Blaine well. God bless all those men! I'm so glad your Dad was okay, Mary. That must have been awful for him. (I made sure to pack sandwiches for DH this morning! And he gave me a kiss, too!) |
Marysafan | Thursday, August 01, 2002 - 11:37 am     I stayed up late...way past my bedtime just to see Blaine last night. Sia, is right. I have never seen Dave treat anyone as well as he treated Blaine...and Blaine did an outstanding job. For those of you who missed it, there is a clip on the late night site. http://www.cbs.com/latenight/lateshow/ |
Sia | Thursday, August 01, 2002 - 08:49 pm     Thanks for the link, Mary. That darned Dave. He's crazy or something. But he was totally restrained and I actually liked him for once. |
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