Yes, it was indeed marvelous. Very, very, very, very good news.

John Gray, I'm sure that the trapped miners gave credit to the many people who worked so hard to free them. It's just that not every sound bite makes it to the airwaves. Certainly, I saw video clips on the TV news over the last several days wherein spokesmen for the rescuers and for the miners' families acknowledged the tireless effort being made and thanked those who were making it.

By the way, Somerset is about 25 miles, more or less, from Johnstown, PA, site of the famous flood of 1889. The area has quite a history of disaster. This time, fortunately, the loss of life was averted.

One of the reasons for that was the quick thinking of, and cooperation between, the trapped miners themselves. They made the decision early on that they would either live as a group or die as a group. They tied themselves together so that, if anyone did perish, the body would not be swept away by the water. They huddled together to share body heat. They worked together to conserve the battery life of their helmet lights. And, of course, they talked to one another to keep the spirit of the group from falling into despair.

One of the sound bites I heard was a comment from one of the trapped miners that he was eager to recuperate from this ordeal and go back to work down in the mines! We are talking about a unique breed of people here!!