Mine glitch delays robot at Crandall Canyon

HUNTINGTON — After nearly reaching the mine floor, a robot that was to search in the Crandall Canyon Mine was pulled from the borehole. Crews must now wait until a seventh hole is drilled before the robot is sent into the mine.

Failure of the robot to reach the mine dealt another blow to family members of the six miners who have been trapped in the mine since Aug. 6. Information from the robot, on which many seem to pin their diminishing hopes, may not be available until the weekend.

The six miners — Kerry Allred, Don Erickson, Luis Hernandez, Carlos Payan, Brandon Phillips and Manuel Sanchez — were trapped when the mine collapsed in the early morning hours. Underground tunneling efforts to reach the miners were halted after a second collapse on Aug. 16 that killed three rescuers and injured six others.

The robot, which arrived last weekend, is similar to one used to search the rubble of the World Trade Center towers after the Sept. 11 attacks. It was lowered into the third borehole and came within 10 feet of the mine Monday night.

But the ceiling had shifted, stopping the robot's progress, said Jack Kuzar, a district manager with the Mine Safety Health Administration. The hole was drilled almost two weeks earlier.

After the robot was withdrawn, other previously drilled holes were examined. However, officials determined the odds were too great that the robot would be destroyed if lowered through one of those holes. So they decided to wait until the seventh hole is finished.

"These other holes have been there awhile, and the mountain is moving," Kuzar said. "That's why we decided to wait until this seventh hole is completed."

The seventh hole was started at 4 a.m. Tuesday. Crews had drilled more than 300 feet by Tuesday night.

Kuzar said it probably would be late today or early Thursday — barring any weather delays like those experienced Monday — before the hole is completed. It could be late Thursday before any family or media briefings.

If it stays on its current course, the drill will punch into the "kitchen" area of the mine that may have been usable as an escape for the trapped miners.

Even when the hole is completed, it could be more than a day before the robot is lowered. Before sending down the robot, workers will bang on the drill and pray for a response. Afterwards, they will need to withdraw the drill, a process that takes several hours, said Richard Kulczewski, MHSA spokesman.