Rescue cage arrives at Chile mine

A special steel cage designed and made by the Chilean Navy to help rescue 33 men trapped for a record seven weeks underground arrived Saturday at the San Jose mine to applause and cheers from miners' loved ones.

"I'm happy because we've been waiting for this for 50 days," the wife of one of the trapped miners, Elizabeth Segovia, told AFP as the truck bearing the cage rolled into the compound under police escort.

Despite the long wait until rescuers can begin pulling the men, one by one, from their shelter 700 meter (2,300 foot) below, by early November at the soonest, the cage buoyed hopes in the makeshift campsite that sprung up after the August 5 cave-in.

"Chi, Chi, Chi, le, le, le. Viva Chile!" shouted everybody as the truck came to a halt.
Measuring 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) and weighing 250 kilograms (550 pounds), the cage is the first of three that will be used to hoist the men up through a 60-70 centimeter (24-28 inch) -wide shaft.

An Austrian-made hoisting system of pulleys and cranes will bring the cage slowly up the rescue shaft.

Engineers said each trip will take from one to one-and-a-half hours, with the entire rescue lasting more than 24 hours.

Health Minister Jaime Manalich told reporters that before the miners come to the surface, at least two people will descend to their shelter: "a mine rescue expert and a highly trained paramedic."

They will help each miner negotiate the long ride back up to the surface, he added.

Once they reach the surface, each miner will be given a medical checkup and provided emergency treatment if needed, before going to an observation compound where they can finally get together with their families, Manalich said.

Meanwhile, three drilling machines continued tunneling their way down to the men. "The machines are working normally. There are no problems," said Mining Minister Laurence Golborne.

Of the three, the Strata-130 offers the earliest chance at a rescue. On Saturday it reached 175 meters (575 feet) down as it widened an earlier guide shaft to the adequate size for the men.

"The plan is to rescue the men by the first days of November," said Golborne.

"If all goes very well, it could come even sooner. If there are problems, it could be delayed."

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