How would you survive being trapped?

How would you survive being trapped?

I have an incredibly low boredom threshold - I don't think I could survive in a hole for four days, let alone four months.

I am in awe of these Chilean miners, for their fortitude,and the fact that the knowledge of the length of their incarceration hasn't , it seems, caused them to despair.

Unfashionable though it is, I suspect that their faith in God may be a huge help at this time.

I've heard that it's a bit like being in a submarine, as they are also cut off for long periods of time. Maybe they could get advice from the people that work under those conditions as to how best to approach it.

I think it would be a huge strain, but knowing that the world knows and that someone's coming to get you would probably tip the balance for me, not knowing and having no contact would be less bearable.

What a silly question? How can I give advice to the trapped miners when I have never been in that situation myself. They will have a lot more knowledge than I or indeed everyone else posting on this HYS. As with most things where you have no choice they just need to grin and bear it until they can be rescued, as there isn't anything else they can do.

It's hard to imagine that anyone on these boards has been or ever will be in a situation even vaguely comparable to this.

Equally, virtually no one here will have the experience and resource that these miners have developed from their years working underground.

In short, what a daft question.

My sympathies are with the miners and their families. I'm glad there is attention to a country in the Americas other than the US, well done BBC.

But really, the HYS site is getting worse by the day.

Facebook?

Ask the cat that was thrown in the bin.

The drillers could always send one of those folding Christmas trees down the small borehole. They should just thank God that they are alive.

There are three million green bottles sitting on a wall and if one green bottle should accidentally fall ...

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I hope the scientists and psychologists study these men and not waste an opportunity to gather data on survival in such isolation. It will give some insight to coping strategies for long space missions and deep sea missions. Otherwise I hope they are well supported and given as much support as possible so they can come through this with a minimum of psychological damage.

Claustrophobia is brought on by being confined in a small space and the fear of not being able to get out. If you've ever been trapped in a lift or on a failed underground train you'll know that 20 minutes is a frighteningly long time. I've been 6000 feet down a mine in South Africa, it's very hot (the further down you go down the hotter and clammier it gets. On a guest visit your mind is kept off the fact that you are so far underground with new sights and sounds and a guides spiel, but it's at the back of your mind that you are close to a situation of being buried alive. If the lights went out and the airflow stopped you would have to be very brave not to panic and freeze with fear. My heart goes out to those trapped miners and their families.

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This is a diffucilt subject... for most of us, thankfully will never be in a situation as this. Yes, I would want to know, if I was trapped down there, how long, about it would take for us to be saved. Four months is a very long time. It's good for the families to know their loved ones is still alive, for as we know in history it isn't always a happy ending.


It's good that NASA is involved and giving them sound advice.

What would I do down there?

Pray.

Then I would encourage myself & the others, we don't all like at least one of the people we work with. Down there could either make that relationship worse or better. I would see them in a different light, hopefully for the better.

I would suggest we tell each in turn stories of good & funny things that have happened in our lives, uplifting stories.

Myself & they would still want to be by ourselves to cry and 'get away from it all,' maybe the loo would be the only place for this, that out the way, then I would join the others, hopefully feeling a tad better.


For those who feel there is no hope - I would remind them of those above who are working day & night to rescue them in the safest way possible and their families who love them.....

Without knowing we have someone who loves us be it a person or a pet. What would be the point?


I HOPE all goes well for ALL.

I've heard that they have the internet down there. They are reading HYS and thanking themselves they don't live in the UK, as they feel that it's a lot worse here than down the mine.

If you're reading this, it's not as bad as a lot of posters make out.

We should probably establish whether or not they have a TV licence, according to the BBC there is no way to survive without one.

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If there's enough space they could practice a song & dance routine and win X-Factor by the time they get out at Xmas.

12. At 10:17am on 26 Aug 2010, grainsofsand wrote:

How would you survive being trapped? This hardly seems worthy of a BBC debate. One rather gets the impression that since the Tory/Liberal coalition has taken over - there has been a dumbing down on HYS as to what one is allowed to debate;in come trivia debates - out go political debates or anything of importance.

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The saying is 'no news is good news'. Probably struggling to find news without labour in power.

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" I spy with my little eye............................."

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..i assume that it's all men down there, so it would be possible that they could have long moments of complete silence! They could tell each of their own life stories ,jokes , and endless games of i-spy "...something beginning with R" "oh, not rock again"!Doing cave 'drawings'? I'd be planning the rest of my life, writing (in my head!) the story for the press etc. I imagine thats it's a bit like being taken hostage, without the added nastiness. Exercise is the most important thing and i quess that they have that sorted.I think that it would be faith in humanity first and myself second ,and God third, that would keep me going.At least they have some idea when they'll be freed and hopefully it'll be sooner than the estimated time. Good for Nasa

"Where are all the experts in mine rescues world wide to get them out today? They are not just Cats!!! but people with familys That what they would like to hear {International experts with equipment on on the way" Dont panic.

Its times like these that a faith in God seems to pay off. Most of these miners will be devout Catholics and in the face of dispair, they have their faith to fall back on.

As for me, I simply couldn't even begin to imagine the scope of what they are going to have to endure.

Good luck to them.

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KEEP THEM FED AND BOOZED UP!!!

AND OF COURSE FRESH AIR.

I'd ask them to spend their time trying to figure out what the heck is going on with whoever chooses the subject matter for the BBC have your say threads.

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...re.comment no.9 RubbishGirl ...that would be sort of an ecstatically crunchy, buzzing noise then . What would Nasa make of that ??!!Send more 'Space Raiders' over......

I would ask for a light some knitting needles and some nice yarn.
I know that the men in Peru do a lot of knitting, I wonder if it is the same for Chile?
I would also ask for some board games, chess, go, backgammon.

Can we try to make this topic interesting? Is there anybody out there that is not pleased that miners are safe? Is anyone going to say that they deserve it as they are "destroying the environment"? Come on anything please?

Set out seperate areas so you dont have to stay with each other all the time and its a choice. I would probably sleep a lot too.

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"Thirty three Chilean miners have been underground since 5 August. What advice would you give the miners?"

I wouldn't. They are clearly the experts so I would ask them.

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25. At 10:39am on 26 Aug 2010, Phillip of England wrote:
Its times like these that a faith in God seems to pay off. Most of these miners will be devout Catholics and in the face of dispair, they have their faith to fall back on.


Personally I'd be questioning why God had decided to bury me in a red hot hole a mile underground in the first place.

Is it similar to being married !!!!!!

Having never personally been trapped in a mine and had to face the prospect of spending several months in there, I cannot offer much valid advice. If I had my iPod I could spend hours just listening to music though.

I would like to know what size the hole is, because then items could be passed through that would help kill the time. A single game of Risk perhaps? That would take a few days. Simply passing the pieces down one by one would take a fair while. Perhaps a football (deflated obviously) if the gap is big enough. Then a 5-a-side tournament.

@9 Good post but you missed out Health and Safety, the nanny state, the Big Brother State, broken Britain, eco-mentalists, petrol heads, petrol prices, any large company that turns a profit, left wing looneys and right wing hard liners.

Also, I don't see you needing that rampant rabbit for long if you are trapped in a mine full of men, and although the Claudy Bomb situation is very important, what debate can it produce, other than everyone saying "The government and the church was wrong"? The HYS team have to use stories that have at least two sides to the argument, otherwise there is no real debate.

Miners are a very resourceful and hardy people and they will survive, its their loved ones, what mental terror must they be going through so close and yet so far away. I cant wait to see the telly footage of the estatic joy of the miners and their families when they are all on the surface reunited. Good luck Chily.

7. At 10:03am on 26 Aug 2010, Graham wrote:
"They should just thank God that they are alive."

That's not likely to help keep them sane.

What further worrys me, is the size of the shaft they are tunnelling being only 26 inch, doesnt leave much/any room for any snags etc which may easily materialise upon lifting these people out. Most miners I know of are also quite broad shouldered.

There will enevitably be times of severe doubt in their minds as to whether they will actually survive and be rescued. From now until xmas is a long long time.

I wouldnt wish this on anyone, except maybe Blair & Cameron & Bush and other politicians.

I hope they make it.

Oddly enough, I was thinking about this last night.

The trapped miners have my total admiration in having got this far not knowing if they'd ever be found. At least their plight is now known, so the worst part is over.

That there is a route of communication and supply, along with everything possible being done to help them is wonderful - yes, it is essential that they know the facts.

What advice would I give the miners? To give any negative thought a run for its money and think of flowers, sunshine, fresh breezes and everything they love and cherish. Make 3 rotational daily groups: A - awake, B - asleep, C - recreation. Shared chores while in Group A, communications with family while in Group C, along with that time being used for good old chats on how they're feeling, coping, progressing. Every day is a day nearer the sunbeams. They are in the thoughts of many, world-wide, and I for one think of them daily. Crossing the days off on the calendar to when I shall leap for joy at their freedom :)That's how I'd try to cope.

As they are being kept at work I hope they are getting overtime!!!!!!!

16. At 10:26am on 26 Aug 2010, Rob jones wrote:
This does not seemed to be a worthy debate..the 11 jobless are exposed to similar mental stresses each day.These miners have lived and worked underground all their lives.i am surprised they are not building an escape tunnel themselves.That would be the best mental boost.In sharpe contrast with the politions melining very highly skilled jobless who the politions have failed to provide jobs for.

Can we have a debate on whether politions are entitled to any pay until they get economics right to get the eleven million jobless full time jobs and stop imergration until they have done so.

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My My Rob, men are trapped a kilometer underground and you make comparisons with jobs and politicians pay. What a sad pathetic soul you are.

"What advice would you give the miners?"

Always look on the bright side of life. Dee-dum, dee-dum, de-dum, de-dum, de-dum.

Mining is a hard job that requires physical and mental stamina on the part of the miner. But to be trapped for 21 days and going is a Herculean task. I may pull through the day but arrive dusk and don't ask me what. All the same, I pray to the Almighty to give them patience and fortitude and let no one die in this terrible quagmire. Hope lasts eternal in the human breast. I hope American experts along with Chilean authorities will help resolve this onerous task with success and cheer.

My posts so far have been toungue in cheek, but I can't help agreeing with #41.

Will be a good day and a good thing to watch when they are brought up.

38. At 10:59am on 26 Aug 2010, Peter_Sym wrote:

25. At 10:39am on 26 Aug 2010, Phillip of England wrote:
Its times like these that a faith in God seems to pay off. Most of these miners will be devout Catholics and in the face of dispair, they have their faith to fall back on.


Personally I'd be questioning why God had decided to bury me in a red hot hole a mile underground in the first place.

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Especially since he prefers drowning, killing of the first born, wars and getting virgins pregnant. Maybe god did have a hand in it?

I would attempt to engage my fellow incarcerees (if it's not a word then it should be) in intelligent and meaningful conversation and given the banality of some of the subject matter we have been invited to comment on in HYS recently it would probably be a lot more stimulating.

'The Chilean Job'.. " 'ang on ,i've got a great idea." Not too much fattening food or they'll be too big for the bore hole. Good luck to the guys.

Let me get this straight: There are 33 professional miners, who excel at digging, and they are stuck underground.

Dig up stupid!

The story is surely the length of time it is going to take to dig an escape route for these miners, testimony to supreme safety measures - after the event of the collapse.

It has always been a difficult job and it is going to be tough controlling the mental edges of even the most formidable miners for any length of time. I just hope this item doesn't fade from the front pages and complacency allowed to set in amongst those on the outside.

I really cannot imagine what it must be like, and worse, I just do not want to try.

Keep breathing!

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This is a non debate

I doubt if anyone on HYS has had a such life threatening experience or for anywhere near as long.

My very limited experience showed that different experiences effect different people different ways.

These miners have ALREADY been trapped and isolated for longer than anybody else except astronauts at 3 weeks without breaking up - so they have already proved their stamina under extreme conditions.

My very limited experiences are - working as "boffin" in non nuclear submarine on anti-submarine detection - one of our team had to be removed because he suffered extreme claustrophobia after one day. Potholing - I was fine but another on his first experience became 'paralysed' after a few feet down - and had to be carried out where he recovered quickly. Climbing - about fifty feet up easy climb - girlfriend became 'paralysed' and had to get her down backwards putting each foot or hand in a "hold" and talking soothingly - took nearly an hour.She never went near a climb again.

But to stay "normal" for weeks on end? No way to know.

Being locked by myself in a confined space for a long period of time wouldnt be to harsh - its the only chance of having a intelligent conversation

16. At 10:26am on 26 Aug 2010, Rob jones wrote:
This does not seemed to be a worthy debate..the 11 jobless are exposed to similar mental stresses each day.These miners have lived and worked underground all their lives.i am surprised they are not building an escape tunnel themselves.That would be the best mental boost.

A mile underground, in a mine that has already collapsed once, with limited food, water and air and in temps over 34'c? Digging a tunnel (with whatever hand tools are available and no shoaring up material) is the last thing these guys should be doing. Sit still, conserve their strength and let the machines dig them out.

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"56. At 11:35am on 26 Aug 2010, RubbishGirl wrote:
Once again, Can't work out why I got modded, was it the brand name (sorry should have said "Generic pickled onion corn snack") The sex toy, or I did I spell the names of the Trumpton firemen wrong?
Can only be left thinking twas the Claudy question wot done it.
Sad beeb. Very sad."
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What's sad is having to mention Claudy at all in an unrelated HYS about trapped miners. If you feel that strongly about it, why not constantly email the BBC directly?

If I was in an extremely narrow place or upside down I'd not run about. Have to save energy. If there was no oxygen left I would stop breathing to conserve oxygen .... and if the hole was filled with water I would write my messages with a pencil so the ink didn't run. If I was with a banker I'd ask them to open their wallet and the pressure of the money would explode the walls out so we could escape. I would talk with a posh accent so that they would make more of an effort to get me out.

If I was in a Scotland I'd say that I had just uncovered a cave full of free beer and the neds would dig me out.

If I was in the city of London I'd shout "oil" and all the investors and petrol companies would try to get the oil and I could escape.

I have never been in that situation. However, I have spent many weeks at a time underground, in the course of my military duties. Working alone in a small underground space takes a very stable psychology. It is reasonable to expect all those trapped to have that stability.

Therefore the main issue becomes that of boredom. This can disorientate the individual quite catastrophically and not make itself apparent until after release.

I used to spend my idle time in that 6'x 8' underground cell, working on obscure problems. I got this idea from the experiences of long term PoWs held in solitary confinement. In one case a prisoner spent several years mentally designing a product, then the production process and the building, in which to house the factory!

He survived his ordeal in good order and went home......... where he put his mental planning into use!........ and became a multi-millionaire!

I have notebooks full of calculations and diagrams for a wide range of possibilities; some viable, others not........ many already previously implemented by other innovators; many completely original......

Quite a few have been used in my work.

56. At 11:35am on 26 Aug 2010, RubbishGirl wrote:

Once again, Can't work out why I got modded, was it the brand name (sorry should have said "Generic pickled onion corn snack") The sex toy, or I did I spell the names of the Trumpton firemen wrong?
Can only be left thinking twas the Claudy question wot done it.
Sad beeb. Very sad.

= = = = = = = = = =

It appears the HYS is not working as it used to yesterday. Before when you pressed "Post Comment" your name appeared above the "your comment" box with "awaiting moderation".

Now No1 post appears - not your post - but if you refresh the page - your "waiting to be moderated" information appears. I hope they fix it soon.

coolhandpaul wrote:
'I've heard that they have the internet down there. They are reading HYS and thanking themselves they don't live in the UK, as they feel that it's a lot worse here than down the mine.
If you're reading this, it's not as bad as a lot of posters make out.'

This comment made me laugh out loud and caused all the Meerkats in my office to spring up from behind their partitions to see what was going on. Nice one.

My advice to the miners, fairly obvious really - start digging!

If it was me I would be looking for some perspective. I would firstly be feeling lucky I worked in a mine which provided an emergency shelter - otherwise I'd certainly be dead. I would also try and imagine people worse off than myself (Iranian dissidents, Pakistani flood victims, Cats from the West Midlands etc.). I would think of my family and how important it would be to then that I survive.
Probably most importantly I would try not to get too serious, I would be asking the rescuers if they could pipe some cold beer down the mine, and playing cards and poker chips - a lads night in that lasts 4 months can't be that bad!

This comment made me laugh out loud and caused all the Meerkats in my office to spring up from behind their partitions to see what was going on. Nice one.

coolhandpaul wrote:
'I've heard that they have the internet down there. They are reading HYS and thanking themselves they don't live in the UK, as they feel that it's a lot worse here than down the mine.
If you're reading this, it's not as bad as a lot of posters make out.'

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

10:20am on 26 Aug 2010, coolhandpaul

Your comment made me laugh out loud and caused all the Meerkats in my office to spring up from behind their partitions to see what was going on. Nice one.

So yet another day of the HYS site knackered, and yet another non subject!

Why when there are so many topics out there right now that should be debated - what are you afraid of BBC? Freedom of speach?

61. At 11:48am on 26 Aug 2010, Khuli wrote:
"56. At 11:35am on 26 Aug 2010, RubbishGirl wrote:
Once again, Can't work out why I got modded, was it the brand name (sorry should have said "Generic pickled onion corn snack") The sex toy, or I did I spell the names of the Trumpton firemen wrong?
Can only be left thinking twas the Claudy question wot done it.
Sad beeb. Very sad."
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What's sad is having to mention Claudy at all in an unrelated HYS about trapped miners. If you feel that strongly about it, why not constantly email the BBC directly?

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TBH I don't have any massively strong feelings on it. I just think it would be a more suitable subject for discussion. I'm not the only one who has noticed or mentioned the "Dumbing down" of HYS recently.Sorry if me posting something only 3 times bothered you. Though If you have a problem with mindless repetition you may wanna try another site. trawling through the archives (the catholic adoption one springs to mind)will show you that that happens a lot here. As does people wandering off topic. Again, apologies, didn't mean to bother anyone, just spicing thing up a bit.

A baseball and catchers mitten worked for Steve McQueen. He could do 3 months standing on his head, in fact the miners could start Tom, Dick and Harry just incase the one from the surface fails.

Will power: the sheer realisation that giving up is not an option teaches you how to survive. Trap and hope refers to psychological or a mental state.

The Satan of Milton's Paradise Lost says "You can make a hell out of heaven and a heaven out of hell". Modern states, the corporations, and the companies are becoming "the Livathans" (the multi-headed monsters) and they also trap. Call it The spirit of the Age or the Curse of the Age but leadership goes to people who are smart enough to avoid traps. I wonder whether the word trap refers to: the panic, the crime, the war on terror, or the suicide. No doubt, it refers to the sacrifice- sometimes unnoticed.

Why does the BBC ask such stupid questions on HYS when there are so many other matters on which correspondents can give reasoned opinions? We all know the BBC is afraid of controversy, but this 'debate' is a waste of limited space.
I do not in any way intend to reduce humanities sympathy and care for the trapped men, but it is simply not a matter for an HYS debate.

Just depends who I was trapped with, Juliette Binoche you could leave me down there for years.

//32. At 10:52am on 26 Aug 2010, Graham wrote:
Can we try to make this topic interesting? Is there anybody out there that is not pleased that miners are safe? Is anyone going to say that they deserve it as they are "destroying the environment"? Come on anything please?//

Beyond saying the obvious, which is, that I'm sure we all sympathise with the miners and wish them well, what can any of us add?

Virtually none of us will have their background and experience, or been in their current situation.


Even by recent standards, this is a rubbish topic for a HYS thread.

How come we haven't had one on Pakistan, for example?

I don't want to appear unmoved by their fate but who dug the hole in the first place? I'd advise them to lay off the caviar for the time being!

Will power: the sheer realisation that giving up is not an option. Trap and hope refers to psychological or a mental state.

The Satan of Milton's Paradise Lost says "You can make a hell out of heaven and a heaven out of hell". Modern states, the corporations, and the companies are becoming "the Livathans" (the multi-headed monsters) and they also trap. Call it The spirit of the Age or the Curse of the Age but leadership goes to people who are smart enough to avoid traps.

I wonder whether the word trap refers to: the panic, the crime, the war, or the suicide. No doubt, it refers to the sacrifice- sometimes unnoticed.

1. I hope their employers don't dock their pay!
2. They'll get bored with the likes of Monopoly!
3. Certainly sure that whatever faith they had before they went down, will certainly change in favour of what humans can achieve for each other rather than any other celestial body!
4. Good Luck!

I actually have been trapped in the past, but being stuck in a lift where the doors didnt open properly isn't quite the same thing as this. What was annoying then wasnt being stuck it was the people coming up to the part open doors and saying 'oh are you stuck? hah hah hah hah hah!;'

I had a magazine with me and I sat down on the floor and read that it passed the forty minutes well enough.

My serious contribution to this thread is for the authorities to consult people who were in isolation and constant fear of their lives during the Lebanon Hostage crisis (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebanon_hostage_crisis.

Hopefully a life without having to listen to politicians will be psychlogical recompense enough for them...

I hope their employers don't dock their pay!
They'll get bored with the likes of Monopoly!
Certainly sure that whatever faith they had before they went down, will certainly change in favour of what humans can achieve for each other rather than any other celestial body!
Good Luck!

I hope their employers don't dock their pay!They'll get bored with the likes of Monopoly!Certainly sure that whatever faith they had before they went down, will certainly change in favour of what humans can achieve for each other rather than any other celestial body!
Good Luck!

Will power: the sheer realisation that giving up is not an option. Trap and hope refers to psychological or a mental state.

The Satan of Milton's Paradise Lost says "You can make a hell out of heaven and a heaven out of hell".Call it The spirit of the Age or the Curse of the Age but leadership goes to people who are smart enough to avoid traps.

I wonder whether the word trap refers to: the panic, the crime, the war, the level of skills, and the suicide. No doubt, it refers to the sacrifice- sometimes unnoticed.

Is the person responsible for HYS on holiday?

How on earth (or under) would I know what advice to give these poor people?

Incredibly, I've never been in a situation similar to theirs. Although, if being kept in the dark in a desperate situation is what we're comparing against then I suppose having to suffer this government IS a good comparison.

62. At 11:48am on 26 Aug 2010, jjs wrote:
If there was no oxygen left I would stop breathing to conserve oxygen ..
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If there was no oxygen left, there would be no oxygen to conserve and you would die. If you stopped breathing, you'd die as well. ;)

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I was trapped in a suffocating hole for 13 years but daylight started to filter through when Labour lost the election

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

78. At 12:25pm on 26 Aug 2010, The Bloke wrote: "How come we haven't had one on Pakistan, for example?" How come the bloke didn't read the HYS's on Pakistan, he probably can't see much more than a miner in a hole!
Ex-miners might have some advice, and there is a good number of them around the UK!

I'm quite claustrophobic so I wouldn't be keen on being trapped anywhere like that. Then again, my claustrophobia would stop me from going down a mine in the first place so I'm unlikely to get trapped in one.

I'd be quite distressed to find out that the rescue might not happen until Christmas though. The sheer boredom of spending months down a mine would do my head in even without the claustrophobia.

i guess it depende on what you have available to keep you sane.

I could and would survive if I knew what I had been told was the truth. The worst thing you can do is the 'false mountain top' trick where whenever you get to what you thought was the top there was another section.

It is down to mental toughness. My guess is that as mining is their profession they already have this in abundance. They have the basics of life: air, water and food; the biggest problem they could have is disease and illness.

We feel intensely painful to hear that 33 miners are trapped inside the Mine but alive within it but such are the conditions one needs to fight with nature when we deliver our best to the humanity no matter how miniature it is in terms of value. Without knowing exactly the background on the prevailing situation underneath and the structure of soil available at the Site ; it is very difficult for the outsiders to guess what best, we can offer to the Miners to keep them happy and enjoy-full over their entire stay until they are rescued from within the trapped condition without losing hope of survival.

From the digital photograph of Equipment desired to be used for drilling the rescue hole or making the route, as made available to us by BBC at their web Site, we consider the Machines proposed as such are not rigid enough to drill or obtain a perfect hole without facing much of problems during the entire operation of preparing the hole. Under such circumstance we suggest that we can well engage a Work-over Rig of adequate capacity with appropriate fluid used as its circulating System to take out the cuttings from within it without happening of any reaction with the soil to drill the hole until we reach nearer to the position of target. Such rigs are plentiful everywhere and can be airlifted to the location at a short notice. We hope such rig shall require no more than 72 Hrs to make the passage complete in all respects.

If we can establish proper communication with them, it shall surely serve us to keep them alive and healthy through interacting with them round the clock as and when they so desire. From the column presented to us by BBC, we hope food supply and electricity is already available to them in plentiful to make their lively.


(Dr.M.M.HAZARIKA, PhD)

//77. At 12:19pm on 26 Aug 2010, frankiecrisp wrote:
Just depends who I was trapped with, Juliette Binoche you could leave me down there for years.//

Dunno about that. Last film I saw with her in (the boring one where she and her hubby get stalked by an Algerian...) she looked distinctly matronly.

What about Audrey Tautou? OK, scary in 'He loves me, he loves me not', but still....

Maybe as well as food and water the authorities could send down battery-operated radios, books, games, regular messages from their families and (very carefully rationed) sleeping tablets - anything to pass the time and help them stay sane? Keep them engaged with daily updates on how the rescue operation is going - perhaps they could even get involved by starting to dig from their end (if it's safe to do so)? At least that might go some way towards helping them feel more positive...

I seem to have upset the mods again so I'll repost in a more acceptable fashion:

The fate of this Chillean miners is far worse than the fate of many people who have survived.

The fact that they have food, water, air & medicine and know help is coming does not make their plight easier than that of my great-uncle who survived 25 days in an open boat after his ship was torpedoed. The suffering of these miners is far worse than those experienced by survivors of nazi death camps or Japanese POW camps and infinitely worse than those held for nearly a decade by terrorists in Lebanon.

Their faith in God will certainly help and God is in no way responsible for the accident and shouldn't be expected to miracle a rescue shaft either.

Happy now?