Jeff Flock: Miners' fate unknown

Flock

SOMERSET, Pennsylvania (CNN) - Rescuers are drilling frantically in an attempt to reach nine trapped coal miners. CNN Anchor Connie Chung spoke Thursday night with CNN Correspondent Jeff Flock, who is on the scene in Somerset, Pennsylvania.

CHUNG: It's now almost 22 hours since nine Pennsylvania coal miners were trapped underground by a roaring rush of water, smashing through the mineshaft walls. It's not known how many of them have survived. It is not known how many of them will survive overnight in a three-foot-high chamber, literally pitch black, air supply in jeopardy, at least partially submerged in waters capable of inducing hypothermia. What do we know? CNN's Jeff Flock is on the story in Somerset, Pennsylvania.

FLOCK: Connie, the big question tonight is: Are they still alive? Here's the latest that we know. The last time they got any tapping from the bottom of that hole that we talked about, the one that they're pumping the water in, any time they -- the last time they heard any tapping from there was now almost eight hours ago. So that's the big question. They're still operating as though they're alive. They believe that they're alive and they're going that way. But at this point, we just don't know -- Connie.

CHUNG: Now, what about the men who were able to escape? There were nine men who were able to get out. Do you know where they were, and why they were able to get out?

FLOCK: They were farther up the shaft here. And when this -- the water began coming through from the Saxman Mine and began pouring in this way, they radioed those men to get out. They were then able to get out and got away, largely because the miners that are still trapped down there were able to radio that information to them.

CHUNG: Now, Jeff, we're told that the reason why the miners got into trouble there was because the authorities, those maps that they had, did not pinpoint this abandoned mine. How could that be?

FLOCK: Exactly. Well, you know, they've been mining in Pennsylvania, coal for 100, 150 years. There are a lot of abandoned mines. They try to catalog them. They did know that the Saxman Mine was out there. But they had a permit that allowed them within 200 feet of the Saxman Mine. That's where they thought they were.

Somehow, something was wrong. Either the map was wrong, they got off course. We don't, at this point, know. That investigation won't even start until they're done with the rescue. But that's what happened. Somehow, something went wrong and they hit that abandoned mine.

CHUNG: Jeff, all of these people have incredible stamina. Are they going to be working through the night?

FLOCK: You betcha. It will take, as we said, 15 hours, at the last report, they think to get through. They began, again, we have not gotten a report from the scene here in the last hour and a half or so. They thought that the drilling was going to start about three hours ago. So if, in fact, it got under way when it was supposed to, they are still maybe a dozen hours away. Maybe they make some time up or something. But we're still looking at a very long time drilling overnight, certainly.

CHUNG: All right. Jeff Flock, thank you so much. I know you'll be staying on top of this story for us and keeping us up to date with any developments. Thank you, Jeff.