Second Drill Penetrates Utah Mine

A second drill has reached the chamber where rescuers believe six Utah miners are trapped, opening up the possibility that a video camera will reveal whether the men are alive. The new hole, wider than the first, punched through at 3am today, the AP reports, and images are expected later. Meanwhile, neighbors and loved ones held a candlelight vigil.

The first hole into the chamber penetrated an area with oxygen levels below breathable and silence on a lowered microphone. Rescuers now believe that drill went off course, into an older, abandoned shaft, and maintain hope that the men are alive. If they are, workers will lower food and water through the new hole while they finish digging an escape tunnel. (More miners stories.)