Page 122 of Atlas: The Story of Pa Salt

‘Can you walk, Ron?’ he asked. Ron shook his head. Suddenly, from the dirt storm at the shaft entrance, Michael emerged with three volunteers.

‘Get him out of here!’ I cried. ‘We’ve got two more to free!’ I put my ear to the pile of earth and listened. I heard a screech. ‘He’s here!’ To my amazement, a stray leg was protruding from some ground we had already cleared. Although the removal was speedier than the last, the man looked in worse shape, and was fading in and out of consciousness. The mine emitted its most sickening groan yet, and the ground began to shake.

I knew which way this was going, and addressed the men.

‘He’ll be harder to get up to the surface. All of you will be needed. I’ll find the last miner.’ The volunteers began to drag the casualty towards the shaft’s entrance, and Ernie picked up his shovel once more. ‘Ernie,’ I said, putting my hand on his shoulder. ‘Thank you. But they need you. I’ll find the final man. What’s his name?’

‘Jimmy, sir. He’s only young. Nineteen years old!’

‘I understand. Now go.’ Ernie spun on his heels and ran into the dust. I put my head to the earth once more, but this time, there was no muffled cry to follow. Instead, I wildly hitat the pile of earth in front of me. I had accepted my fate. The mine would collapse, and I would be buried alongside Jimmy. In the hope of letting him know he wasn’t going to perish alone, I cried out, ‘Jimmy! We’ll be all right! Do you hear me, Jimmy? We’re going to be just fine!’ To my utter surprise, I received a distinctly audible groan in reply. ‘Jimmy?! Jimmy is that you?!’

‘Uhhhhhh,’ I heard again. I followed the voice, and to my shock, I came across a semi-conscious man whose torso was completely visible. His legs, however, were trapped directly under a timber support. I grabbed his hand, my heart beating out of my chest.

‘Jimmy! Hold on tight!’ I cried, yanking him as hard as I could muster. He cried out in pain, as it became evident that he was well and truly stuck. I began to dig around his waist, but it was no good. I grabbed the oil lamp and confirmed that the support beam had fallen against the shaft’s wall at an acute angle, which is why it had not crushed Jimmy to death, but had trapped him instead. I grabbed the beam and tried to shift it. I could not.

‘Please,’ Jimmy mumbled. ‘Please, please...’

I ran my fingers along the timber, feeling for any cracks in the wood. If I could somehow cause the beam to split, it might be enough to release Jimmy below, whilst keeping the earth above from crushing him. After a few moments of fumbling, I came across the required fissure. With renewed hope, I grabbed the pickaxe again, and began to attack the beam. The ground beneath my feet was now moving so much that my swings lacked the required accuracy. ‘Damn it!’ I yelled. If only I had something sharp to push into the split to help force it apart. As I felt around the floor for rocks, I remembered the object I had in my possession.

‘The diamond,’ I breathed. I whipped the leather pouchover my head, and prised the precious contents from inside. Then I felt for the largest part of the fissure, and forced the diamond inside. I took a step back and swung the pickaxe behind my head. With a silent prayer, I brought it down with as much force as I could muster. The clunking ‘thud’ reassured me that I had made contact. A cracking sound followed, as the lower half of the beam split away from the top. Dropping the pickaxe, I grabbed the timber and pulled with all my might. Against the odds, my plan worked. The bottom section of the beam came away, and the top continued to support the earth above. I grabbed Jimmy’s hand and pulled him free.

It was fortunate that I was able to act so quickly, as the remaining timber soon split in two. Dragging Jimmy along the floor by his arms, I made my way through the rubble and dust.

‘Help!’ I cried at the top of my lungs when I reached the mouth of the shaft. ‘Help, please!’ I concluded that no one could hear me above the terrible rumble. Summoning every ounce of life I had left, I grabbed hold of Jimmy’s limp body and flung it over my shoulder. Then I grasped the iron railings and began to climb up and out of hell. It was sheer agony. But I had come this far. After a few metres, I began to hear voices.

‘Hey, someone’s coming up!’

‘There’s no way. You’re seeing things!’

‘Just look down there!’

‘Bloody hell, get down there and help him! We’re coming, sir, just hang on!’

I continued to force my way up towards freedom, when I felt Jimmy’s weight begin to lift from my shoulders.

‘We’ve got him. Pull him up, Michael!’ said Ernie’s voice.

Removing Jimmy from my shoulders had the adverse effect of destabilising me, and my feet slipped from the railings. AsI hung freely, I saw Jimmy being hauled over the entrance to the shaft. Then the rumbling from below me became a shrill howl, and debris from above began to fall onto my face.

‘It’s going!’ Ernie shouted. ‘Quick, grab him!’

I looked below and was faced with a collapsing vortex of earth and wood. The shrill howl turned into a deafening roar, and as I looked up, the last thing I saw was Ernie’s hand, desperately reaching down for my own. I went to grab it, but the iron railing succumbed to the collapsing ground. I felt myself fall for a moment, before the world around me faded from view.

When I awoke, to my surprise, I was in one of the makeshift shacks above ground, lying on top of a pile of discarded work clothes.

‘He’s awake!’ Ernie said. I blinked hard and he came into focus. ‘Mr Tanit. You’re alive!’

I became aware of the immense pain that breathing was causing me. ‘My chest,’ I groaned.

‘It’s your ribs, sir. We reckon they’re well and truly smashed up. How’re your legs?’ he asked. ‘Can you wiggle them?’

I tried, successfully. ‘Yes. The men from shaft seven...’

‘All fine, sir, apart from a few broken bones alongside being a bit shaken up. And it’s all thanks to you.’

I put my hand to my throbbing head. ‘The mine collapsed on me.’

‘Yes, sir, just as you were about three metres from the surface. Thankfully, we had eyes on you and we started digging straight away. Near enough the whole workforce was involved in getting you out. Many hands make light work.’