Somerset, Pennsylvania ? With heavy equipment and heartfelt prayers, rescue workers drew tantalizingly close Saturday to a dark and cramped chamber where they hoped to find nine trapped coal miners alive, and return them to their loved ones.

A rescue shaft reached a depth of 224 feet – less than 20 feet from the miners – by 3 p.m., said David Hess, secretary of the state Department of Environmental Protection. Emergency officials were to decide how best to enter the 4-foot chamber in the Quecreek Mine where the men have been trapped since Wednesday.

“We’re on the verge,” Gov. Mark Schweiker said just after 6 p.m., predicting that the final rescue effort could begin before midnight.

Even though there had been no contact with the miners since Thursday, when tapping was heard on an air hole, workers were optimistic that they were alive. The miners’ families, encamped nearby, could only hope they were right.

“The best-case scenario is that when we pull the drill bit out we hear hollering,” Hess said.

Schweiker said when the rescue shaft reached the miners’ chamber, rescuers would decide how to enter a protective air pocket where they believed the miners were huddled, and send a capsule to retrieve the miners one or two at a time.

“It’s fair to say the deep mine rescuers will be ready,” Schweiker said. “We will not miss a beat.”

Drilling on a second rescue shaft stopped Saturday afternoon when an extention rod on a drill apparently snapped at a depth of 204 feet. Workers were trying to repair the problem.

Once the first rescue shaft was completed, it was expected to take time – perhaps hours more – for workers to ready machinery to lower people who would bring up the miners.

Helicopters were readied to whisk miners from the scene 55 miles southeast of Pittsburgh to hospitals, and medical personnel were set to immediately treat injuries or hypothermia.

Nine decompression chambers also were placed at the scene. Medical personnel said the air pressure on the miners could be as much as is experienced at 40 feet underwater, and the men could suffer the bends – bubbles in the bloodstream caused by rapid changes in pressure – once they were rescued. An airlock was on site to keep the rescue shaft pressurized if needed.

Air was being pumped into the chamber at a temperature of more than 100 degrees in the hope that it would warm the men.

Schweiker also reported slowed progress in draining water from the mine, with less than a foot to go before the 30 feet needed to give the trapped men more room and ensure the pressure wouldn’t cause water to rise when the drills finally punched through.

When that happened, a cap was to be placed over the rescue shaft at the surface to ensure the chamber remained pressurized.

A slim, unmanned “capsule” would then be sent into the shaft with a camera and communication device; atmospheric devices would also measure the levels of oxygen, carbon dioxide and methane in the chamber, said Dave Lauriski, assistant secretary of the Mine Safety and Health Administration.

The capsule would remain in the chamber five or 10 minutes, and, if any of the miners is able, could climb in and be brought to the surface. If no one boards the capsule, a decision would be made about whether to send rescuers down.

Schweiker said Saturday morning families of the trapped miners were encouraged – particularly after a frustrating day of drilling Friday – when he showed them a handful of limestone from a depth of 150 feet.

“That served to buoy their spirits,” the governor said.

Dozens of family members kept a vigil at a fire hall in nearby Sipesville, and had made several trips to the rescue site. The governor said officials were meeting with them every hour to bring them up to date.

There was no clear indication the miners, ages 30 to 55, were still alive. Rescuers twice tried to listen Friday, but noise from rescue equipment made it too difficult to hear tapping sounds or other noises.

The accident occurred about 9 p.m. Wednesday when the miners broke the wall of an abandoned mine that maps showed to be some 300 feet farther away. As much as 60 million gallons of water rushed into the shaft where they were working.

The miners were able to warn a second crew, which escaped.

The rescue attempt has transfixed the region, a hilly, rural area long dependent on coal and one that suffered tragedy during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The 40 passengers and crew on Flight 93 died when it was taken over by hijackers and crashed near Shanksville, about 10 miles from the mine. Schweiker said family members of Flight 93 victims sent an e-mail message to the families of the miners.

“This eight-county area is famous for its mines and its miners, and everyone knows someone in the mines, so it’s really hit close,” said Alex Zinovenko, 45. “You figure something like this could happen. Can you be prepared? I don’t think so. We’re knocked around a bit by this.”