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MINA SAN JOSE, Chile : One of the drilling machines being used in the effort to free 33 trapped Chilean miners halted for two days of repairs as a third machine arrived at the site, rescue officials said Thursday.
The Schramm T-130 shut down late Wednesday after digging some 268 meters (880 feet), according to lead engineer Andres Sougarret.
The shutdown was planned to replace a bolt, and Sougarret said it would take 48 hours to get the rig back in operation.
The T-130 is one of three machines being used in the all-out effort that could take months to rescue the miners trapped at a depth of 700 meters since August 5. Heading the "Plan B" effort, it had in just three days dug deeper than the first rig in operation.
The first machine used, a Strata 950, had progressed some 141 meters in 10 days.
Trucks bearing the third drilling machine began arriving at Chile's San Jose mine near Copiapo on Thursday.
Forty-two trucks traveled from Iquique, a coastal town some 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) away, and began arriving at the mine in groups carrying the enormous disassembled drill, which will be used to tunnel through layers of rock to reach the trapped miners.
Officials have dubbed the effort their "Plan C" to reach the men, which will be carried out alongside the two other rescue operations.
"We can now begin to assemble the separate pieces of the machine," said Sougarret.
If all goes according to schedule, Plan C will drill down just 597 meters (1,958 feet), shortening the rescue time to perhaps two months.
Once each piece of the drill has been unloaded later Thursday, workers will begin assembling the massive machine.
The drill requires a football-pitch size base to set up and is expected to begin drilling down toward the trapped miners around September 18, the bicentennial of Chile's independence from Spain, President Sebastian Pinera said over the weekend.
The new gear, operated by the Canadian company Precision Drilling, can drill up to 2,000 meters below the surface at a speed -- depending on the density of the ground -- of between 20 and 40 meters a day, according to Chilean officials.
Meanwhile, steady progress was made on two alternative rescue bids -- dubbed Plans A and B -- to drill tunnels to the trapped Chilean miners.
The workers have become national heroes since being discovered on August 22, 17 days after a mine cave-in in the remote Atacama desert.
Euphoria at their discovery was dampened by the grim news they might have to remain underground for months, possibly until Christmas, before being rescued.
Food and water is being dropped down narrow shafts to the miners to keep them alive as well as medicines and games to keep them occupied.
- AFP /ls
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