'Phoenix' rescue capsule arrives ahead of schedule at Chilean mine

[Judi Lynn]

'Phoenix' rescue capsule arrives ahead of schedule at Chilean mine
By Karl Penhaul, CNN
September 25, 2010 6:00 p.m. EDT

Copiapo, Chile (CNN) -- Rescue workers in Chile took delivery Saturday of a 420-kilogram (924-pound) cage that is expected to haul 33 trapped miners back to the surface.

Authorities have dubbed the device the "Phoenix Capsule" because they say it will help the miners rise up again and give them a new life.

The first rescue capsule arrived at the San Jose gold and copper mine Saturday afternoon, draped in plastic sheeting. About half an hour later, Chilean Mining Minister Laurence Golborne and Health Minister Jaime Manalich, accompanied by rescue engineers, unveiled the capsule. It was painted in the red, white and blue colors of the Chilean flag.

Relatives of the trapped miners saw the capsule for the first time and began applauding.

Golborne said the capsule weighed 420 kilograms (924 pounds) and its interior height was six feet, four inches (1.9 meters).

More:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/09/25/chile.miners/index.html?hpt=T2

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Financial News USA
Sep 25
Rescue capsule arriving ahead of schedule at Chilean mine

~snip~
At an early afternoon press conference near the entrance to the San Jose mine Chilean Health Minister Jaime Manalich outlined plans for the final phase of the rescue.

He said two rescuers -- a rescue expert and a highly skilled paramedic -- would make the first journey in the Phoenix Capsule and drop the 700 meters into the mine.

They would carry out a medical check of the miners and decide the order in which they would be extracted based on their physical and mental conditions. He said the ride from the cavern where the miners have been holed up since August 5 back to the surface would take an estimated 15 minutes.

Manalich said there was no plan to sedate any of the miners for the journey.

"Compared to the 50 days the miners have so far spent down there, the 15-minute ride back will be like nothing," he said

More:
http://www.financialnewsusa.com/more/52-world/17858-rescue-capsule-arriving-ahead-of-schedule-at-chilean-mine