Chile mine rescue - chuckle

I've watched a few minutes of the live feed of the Chilean miner rescue. First off, I marvel at the expertise and dedication to FIND the area where they're at, then DRILL down to contact them and then DRILL a hole to extract them. Lots of great engineering and ingenuity, I'm sure. Reminds me of that rescue in our country few years ago.

However, I got a chuckle when I saw a closeup of the top of the hole. They used a snatch block to keep the capsule cable away from the wall of the slanted bore hole. It was removable so they would lower the capsule and then install it to guide the cable. The block's hook appeared to be just grabbing on outside wall of the liner with a strap on the hook and a guy was sitting there with one foot on each side of the hook, presumably to keep it from slipping off. Did I see that right?

If so, I can't believe they wouldn't have welded on some bracket for the hook or come up with SOMETHING better than a guy holding it with his feet. Did anybody else see that? Or did I miss something?

I had visions of them getting ready to lower the capsule and everyone looking at each other saying "I thought YOU were going to weld that on".

I saw that and wondered why they didn't just drill a 1" hole in the liner to hook that hook into. Their method seems to be serving them well, though. Bet it'd make a heck of a bang if it slipped off the lip of the liner and whizzed down the cable and hit the top of the capsule, though. Poor feller in the capsule would need fresh shorts when they got him to the surface...

I saw that, too, and it appeared the fellow with his foot on it was keeping the cable centered in the hole by varying pressure on the piece with the pulley.

If I heard right, one of the fellows exited the cage, kissed his wife, and the first thing he said was "How's the dog?".

I wondered why they didnt have the wheel the cable was on over the center of the hole? Then they wouldnt need the snatch block. I figure they know what they are doing and are sure to know more then I do,

It did look pretty jury rigged. However, they did say there were a couple of bends in the shaft (who did that happen?), so maybe they had to move the block around, depending of angle of the cable.

What surprised me even more was that one of the talking suits on CNN actually called it a "block"- whoda thunk they would have got that right? I'd have bet the farm they would all have called it a pulley.

I didn't see what you're talking about, just went through 177 pictures on yahoo's home page, and still didn't see it. Did see what looked like a head frame with about a 24 to 30-inch sheave.
I would have thought they would have set it up with a bull's eye fairlead, or at least a fleeting sheave.

It appears that the tube and shaft was drilled on a slight angle. that could account for the way it was rigged.

(quoted from post at 16:54:41 10/13/10) I saw that and wondered why they didn't just drill a 1" hole in the liner to hook that hook into.

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I kinda thought the same thing. Noticed on latest feed (30th guy getting in the capsule) that it appears that it's secured somehow. Fascinating to watch, especially the feed from the bottom. Watched guys posing for pix waiting for their turn. Rescuers just walking around joking. Kinda wondered what the last guy (rescuer, I presume) is gonna do. Just turn out the lights and climb in the capsule, I would imagine.

And puddles, I figure I was doing good by calling it a block. I'm gonna have to google all those things you mentioned to educate myself. :wink:

ps 30th miners wife is HOT :lol:

JML755 the bulls eye fairlead will be easy to find, just about every 4x4 winch has a very simple one. The fleeting sheave will be a little harder to find. They are generally used when you can not stay within the 18 to 1 ratio. 18 to 1 ratio you ask? For every inch of width on the drum of the winch the wire rope has to travel 18-inches before touching anything! Or the wire rope will not wrap correctly on the drum of the winch. :wink:

See, I'm getting more and more educated all the time on this forum. :lol: And yeah, I guess I knew what a "bulls eye fairlead" was, just didn't know that's what it was called. Always called it the "roller thingy". :lol:

Anyway, 32nd miner on his way up. Rescuers just lolling around like it's another day at the office. I think there's 5 of them down there, so the capsule is gonna have to make a few more trips. Be cool if they just tied a rope to the camera showing the bottom and dragged it up with a rope on last trip.

If you heard "como esta pero"...that would be right. Remembered some of my language training in Army Special Forces. Rescue effort is fantastic to watch! I cannot imagine what those guys and their families have gone through! If you don"t tear up watching that...there is something wrong with you.

It is not only on an angle, it is curved.

Just leave the lights on. Who's gonna check?

All the power to the people, but millions die every day because no one cares. These miners are so fortunate to be in 1st world country. Don from Canada

9 PM Arizona time,All miners and rescue people are out of the mine.Safely I might add.Why do I have the feeling that the Mine Co. may use this escape shaft to lower Engineers back down into the mine to access the posibilities of reclaiming the mine and also did I hear early in this adventure that the Mine Co. filed for Bankruptcy protection?

The news seed the Mine will be closed.

What I saw they said the shaft was drilled with some curves in it so that they could avoid drilling through old mine shafts that might collapse and block the new bore.

I certainly don't understand how they drill that way, but I know they do it in the oil fields all the time. They drill down, then over, and then down again. It lets them concentrate the pumps and such in fewer locations, saving them money. It's what they do in the arctic because it also means they disturb less land, which keeps all but the radical environmentalists happy.