Drill reaches depth of trapped Utah miners

[redtanker]

HUNTINGTON, Utah - The frenetic effort to drill into the presumed location of six workers trapped in a collapsed mine yielded no audible evidence of survivors early Friday. But rescuers cautioned their work isn’t done and that air quality in the mine could sustain life.

Using a steel drill bit to bore a 2½-inch wide hole more than 1,800 feet into the mountain site of Monday’s cave-in, rescuers finally broke through late Thursday into the cavity where authorities believe the miners are trapped. A crude measurement found enough oxygen to keep the men going if they survived the collapse.

But a microphone dropped into the void failed to pick up any sounds indicating the miners are alive. And though the air sample indicated plenty of oxygen and no methane in the pocket, it also did not pick up carbon dioxide, the gas exhaled when people breathe.