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Chilean miners mark one month underground

The 33 men trapped in a Chilean mine mark a full month underground on Sunday. Authorities say it could take several more weeks to free the miners, who have been stuck 700 metres underground since a cave-in at the San Jose mine in Chile's remote Atacama desert on 5 August.

Reuters
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The men's families said they would mark the one-month anniversary of the mine's collapse in the mid-afternoon, sounding horns and whistles.

On Saturday, they were able to speak to the miners for the first time, via a video link between their underground shelter and the surface.

Over the past month, the 33 men - 32 Chileans and one Bolivian - have become symbols of survival.

Contact was first made only 17 days after the mine collapsed, when rescuers drilling an escape tunnel reached their underground shelter, and created a conduit to send down food and water.

A 30-tonne drill that can excavate up to 20 meters per day began work on Monday.

But engineers say it could be up to four months before the men can be safely brought to the surface.

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