Chile mine rescue dwarfs others: World's Top 5 mine rescues

1. Pennsylvania: Aug. 1963

The shafts drilled in Chile to reach the trapped miners were an obvious answer to the puzzle of how to rescue the men, given that it's 2010. But boreholes have not been part of the equation in mine rescues for very long. The first rescue using boreholes was in 1963, when three men were trapped in a coal mine after a cave-in. An initial 6-inch hole was drilled to pinpoint the trapped miners. After that, workers drilled a hole large enough for the men to be brought out of the mine. Two men were pulled out alive, wearing harnesses and football helmets.

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