【英语国际】智利被困矿工救援通道即将打通

A drill should reach 33 trapped Chilean miners by Saturday and an operation to extract the men could start only days later, Mining Minister Laurence Golborne said, placing a rescue within reach months earlier than originally projected.

Mr. Golborne, who heads the effort to extract miners trapped since Aug. 5, said a drill operated by one of three rescue team had reached 1,755 feet as of Thursday morning and was only a little more than 300 feet from where the miners have taken refuge.

Once the drill reaches the miners, he said engineers would assess the need to reinforce the 28-inch-wide shaft with steel pipe before pulling the men out.

Mr. Golborne said operations to extract the men in a custom capsule could start within two to three days after the drill breaks through. Installing the casing, he said, might delay the rescue at least eight more days.

The question about reinforcing all or a portion of the shaft has triggered heated debate. Some engineers, and a number of outspoken relatives of the miners, consider the casing a necessary precaution. Others say the shaft may be sufficiently stable to make the installation of pipe unnecessary. In addition, some note the casing itself could pose a danger if it fractures underground. 'There are also risks involved in placing the [casing] so we have to evaluate all the elements to make the final decision,' Mr. Golborne said.

Center Rock Inc., a small drilling tools company from Berlin, Pa., is providing the drilling-bit technology for the so-called Plan B effort, the most advanced of three shafts rescuers are drilling to reach the trapped men.

Civil defense and medical workers on Thursday ran a trial of the postextraction operation in which they will attend to the miners in a field hospital and then transfer them by helicopter to the nearby town of Copiapo.

智利矿业部长戈尔沃内(Laurence Golborne)说，钻井机可在周六之前将救援通道打通至33名被困矿工目前所处位置，接下来再过几天就可以开始对这些矿工展开营救了，这使救援行动比最初预计的提前了数月。

戈尔沃内自8月5日起一直负责被困矿工的脱险救援行动，他说，三个救援团队中有一个团队的钻井机于周二早间已钻到了1755英尺的深度，距离矿工被困位置只有300英尺多一点点。

他说，钻井机一旦钻到矿工被困位置，工程师将根据实际情况首先用钢管加固28英寸宽的竖井，然后再救矿工出井。

戈尔沃内说，钻井机打通救援通道两三天后，就可开展用定制升井舱将矿工运送出井的救援行动。他说，安装升井舱可能会使救援行动至少耽搁八天以的时间。

关于加固全部还是部分竖井的问题引起了激烈讨论。一些工程师与很多直言不讳的矿工家属认为，安装升井舱是必要的防范措施。而其他人则认为竖井可能已足够稳固，加装钢管是多此一举。另外，有些人指出，如果升井舱在地下断裂，本身就可能引发危险。戈尔沃内说，安装升井舱也有风险，因此我们在做最后决定之前要综合考虑各种因素。

美国宾州生产钻井工具的小型公司Center Rock Inc.为所谓的B计划提供钻头技术，它是三个竖井救援小组中技术最先进的一个，目前正在为解救被困矿工不断钻探。

智利民防和医护工作者周四演练了矿工出井后的救援工作，演习中他们在野战医院照料被救矿工，然后用直升机将其转移至附近的科皮亚波镇。