Drilling makes progress toward trapped Chile miners

COPIAPO, Chile — A "Plan B" for saving 33 miners made swift progress in its first days of drilling but engineers Tuesday downplayed chances of a quicker rescue than the two to three months authorities expect.The second drilling operation, which began Sunday, reached a depth of 123 meters (400 feet) by midday Tuesday according to engineer Miguel Fort. Engineers say the "Plan B" must tunnel 620 meters (2,034 feet) below ground in order to reach the men trapped in a dramatic limbo.The first drilling operation started work on August 30. That process could take up to four months and requires drilling down the full 700 meters (2,300 feet) into the mine by enlarging an existing shaft being used to supply the miners with food, water and other goods."Plan A," which aims to first bore a 33-centimeter (13-inch) wide pilot hole that will then be doubled using a special drill bit to 66 centimeters, has so far tunneled only 113 meters (370 feet).But despite the rapid drilling of the second effort, Fort cautioned against hopes of accelerating the timetable, which still calls for reaching the miners -- trapped since August 5 -- by November at the earliest."This was already expected," he said of the progress, adding that the teams were expanding an existing shaft.Rescue team member Rene Aguilar said that the "Plan B" drill, known as the Scrhramm T-130 and nicknamed "the miracle" by the relatives of the miners, was expected to advance between one and three meters per hour (three to nine feet) depending on the type of rock."The timetable is unchanged," Aguilar added.With two drills already working on rescue shafts to reach the men, a third is expected to begin work later this month.The "Plan C" option involves a drill that would have to reach down just 597 meters (1,958 feet), shortening the rescue time to perhaps two months. But it will not be ready to start work until September 18.The men got a glimpse of hope on Tuesday as they heard echoes deep in the mine of the two machines drilling to reach them."They are happy becau

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