Utah miners would face darkness (Calling Captain Obvious!)

Yahoo! News (AP) ^ | 8/9/2007 | Pauline Arrillaga

[Pyro7480]

HUNTINGTON, Utah - If the six trapped miners are alive, they may be sitting in inky darkness, their headlamps having burned out. Wearing thin work clothes in the 58-degree cold, they could be chilled to the bone if water is seeping into their chamber 150 stories below ground. How much air they might have is anyone's guess....

I'm sure their lights have died by now. I'm sure it's pitch black," said miner Robby Robertson, 27, of Orangeville, Utah, who worked in the mine several years ago. "Imagine the darkest place you've ever been."

Murray, however, said that if the miners survived the cave-in itself, they would probably be spending most of the time in the dark to conserve their headlamp batteries, which are generally good for about 12 hours each.

"As soon as they realized they were trapped, it is very likely they went down to one light and very likely they went into total darkness a lot of the time and only used that light for the purpose of getting to the materials they need to ensure their survival," Murray said. "It wouldn't be bright. It would be like a very, very, large flashlight."

[Pyro7480]

[TChris]

If the six trapped miners are alive, they may be sitting in inky darkness, their headlamps having burned out.

And these people are paid to write this stuff!

[reagan_fanatic]

[ari-freedom]

well I don’t see the article as trying to prove something we already know but rather to help us visualize the situation of the miners

[TChris]

well I don’t see the article as trying to prove something we already know but rather to help us visualize the situation of the miners

I understand that. But the darkness part is one thing everyone had already figured out by now.

[taxcontrol]

I've always thought that a small personal fanny pack that contains:

a couple of chem sticks,
a bottle of water (or water filter),
first aid kit,
carbon dioxide absorbent material,
a couple of energy bars,
a space blanket,
and some sleeping pills

would be small enough to be carried and a good thing to carry into a mine.

[2111USMC]

In darkness there is no light.

[Arkinsaw]

I've always thought that a small personal fanny pack that contains:

We live in a modern age. We keep lights on watches going for a long time with tiny batteries. I am not sure there is any reason at all for men to be without at least a small light source after a few days.

[Baladas]

Well, I think the actual rescue is within hours, and I can’t wait to see the breaking story on how the light hurts their eyes when they first see it develops.

[expatpat]

Actually, if they are even slightly smart, they will have turned off most of their headlamps to conserve them for when and if they really need them.

[taxcontrol]

That reminds me ... when I was in the military doing night time land nav, a lot of times it was so dark, you could not read the compass or the sign that marked the point. To make things worse, you were not allowed to have a flash light.

I bought one of those Indigo watches just so I could have a light source that I could read.

[cripplecreek]

We live in a modern age. We keep lights on watches going for a long time with tiny batteries.

Actually you make a good point. I've got several dynamo and solar powered flashlights around here. Also I have a tiny flashlight on my key-chain that's only about an inch and a half long (about the size of a cigarette filter). I'm not sure what type of light it is but it's very bright and it's lasted several months so far without needing the batteries changed. It's powered by 4 watch batteries and has hours and hours of use on it. I use it all the time for the simple convenience.

[JRios1968]

[ansel12]

Surely miners have heard of LED flashlights.

Among the flashlights that I have owned for years, I have a single AA that will burn for 41 hours, a three AA that will burn continuously for 2 weeks,a 3 D cell light that burns for thirty days.

I just sent my son a single AAA key chain light that will burn about 24 hours, with an extra battery like I carry that is an awful lot of light assuming that you use it sparingly.

[Dr.Deth]

[Arkinsaw]

It also seems to me that all of the spaces where men can be in a mine...there is a direct route to the surface prior to cave ins.

Seems like there could be some sort of emergency air tubes laid throughout the mine that could be tapped from most locations in the event of cave-in with air pumped from the surface.

As for communications, surely we can come up with a way to insure communications through some bit of fallen coal. Running wire throughout the mine to act as an antenna...or as a telegraph wire even.

[Cuttnhorse]

Actually, if they are even slightly smart, they will have turned off most of their headlamps to conserve them for when and if they really need them.

That's exactly right...they would conserve their lamps...use one until it went out then use another. These lamps hold their charges for days if they are not in constant use.

[dr_lew]

I’ve been wondering, what reason is there to believe they even survived the initial collapse? How could anything at all be known about what happened at that depth?