Peruvian miners recount ordeal
Nine Peruvian miners trapped for six days in an abandoned copper mine prayed and wept during moments of intense anguish, then told each other jokes and even danced to hold onto hope before they finally walked free Wednesday.
The miners, ranging in age from 23 to 58, walked out without assistance from a reinforced tunnel that rescuers had built.
“On the second day, we were saying that they weren’t going to get us out, that we were going to die,” said Santiago Tapia, 21, the youngest miner.
The miners were trapped by a cave-in triggered by an explosion they had set. They had communicated with rescuers through a hose by which they also got food and medicine. “Thanks to that hose we are now still alive,” Tapia said.