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CNN Live Today

Nine Coal Miners Pulled From Flooded Mine Shaft

Aired July 29, 2002 - 11:10   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: I want to bring you the latest now on the amazing story of survival and rescue in rural Pennsylvania as it took place this weekend. The nine coal miners pulled from that flooded mine shaft over the weekend are recovering this morning. Three of them are still in good condition. The doctors say they are in good condition.

Our Bill Hemmer is on the scene in Somerset, Pennsylvania, and he has the latest.

Bill, good morning once again.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR; Hey, Daryn, hello, and good morning again from Somerset.

We expect in about an hour and 45 minutes, Daryn, that a possibly two or even three of those miners still hospitalized will brief reporters and tell us their story of their ordeal, 77 hours at 240 feet subterranean, and the stories are absolutely amazing.

Some of the doctor did talk earlier today. They talk about the three in the hospital as being in good condition. They say they're adjusting well right now. They said they made an enormously smart decisions while they are awaiting that drill to finally come down and get the rescue shaft open so they could be extracted early Sunday morning.

They also talked about psychological impact. They said it's something they won't be able to truly gauge until months down the road, or even possibly years, but they say, right now, it's entirely too early.

Let's listen to one of the doctors, Daryn, who briefed reporters about two hours ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. RUSSELL DUMIRE, CONNEMAUGH MEMORIAL MEDICAL CENTER: To see these guy who had to crawl into that cage by themselves, shut that huge steel door, come up 250 feet, and then to come out on their own power, that to me is just a testament to pure human will.

As physicians, we can put things back together and we can rearrange things the way that they were supposed to be, but we can't heal the patients. That comes from inside. These guys have the will to live, and it didn't -- they made our job extremely easy. I mean, they did the work. We just, you know, made the environment right for them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: A will to live, boy, you could underline that statement a thousand times over. Quickly, "The Daily American" is the newspaper here in Somerset County. Nine for nine, a couple of colorful pictures. Vicki Rock is a reporter. She's with us now. You were out there.

You had the day off yesterday?

VICKI ROCK, "SOMERSET DAILY AMERICAN": Yes, we did. Yes, I had yesterday off.

HEMMER: Tell us, Vicki, the spirit of the community is something that you tell me is so incredibly strong.

ROCK: Right.

HEMMER: How do you perceive that in the area here?

ROCK: People were very optimistic. They're very religious, and we just kept faith that they would come out alive.

HEMMER: Was there point, though, where you said, you know, it doesn't look good?

ROCK: We're in trouble.

Yes. When the drill bit broke and it was 18 hours before they could get it out to substitute a new one, we began to wonder, would we make it?

HEMMER: One of the things that I think been talked about a little bit but probably not to the full extent so the rest of the country understands, the mood in Somerset County, and that goes back to 9/11; United Airlines flight 93 -- reflection on that.

ROCK: When the plane crashed, people here rushed to the scene, convinced we were going to be rescuing people, not realizing of course that everybody would be dead. So when it came to this, we had to be optimistic. All right, they're alive, we are going to get them out.

HEMMER: At this point, they turned out...

ROCK: They're fine.

HEMMER: ... with a good happy ending.

How do you think the governor has done?

ROCK: He's super. We wish he'd run. He was here the whole time. HEMMER: The thing about governor, is that he's not running for re-election. But the very fact that he's in this position, was because Tom Ridge, the former governor, took the job at the White House, as homeland security director.

ROCK: And he moved up.

But, yes, we wish he would run; he's great.

HEMMER: What are you hearing in terms of the three still hospitalized? Do you have any information that we have not found out just yet?

ROCK: One they're keeping possibly overnight, because they're afraid he might have a heart condition. He had trouble earlier. The other two may go home as early as today.

HEMMER: And we possibly will hear from them within the next two hours.

ROCK: I hope so.

HEMMER: As you go through the town now, what do you hear people saying?

ROCK: Oh, thank God. Even little children have stopped me and said, we're praying for them. We knew they would make it. So it was a miracle.

HEMMER: Thank you. Vicki Rock, from the local newspaper. I like the signs as you go down the street here. The signs all over the place, they say "Nine Alive," "Nine Lives," "Nine for Nine."

ROCK: "The Miracle."

HEMMER: "The Miracle," that's right. Thank you, Vicki.

Daryn, more a bit later. Back to you now in Atlanta.

KAGAN: Bill Hemmer in Somerset, Pennsylvania. Thank you.

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