How Diet and Exercise Worked A Miracle

For two coal miners trapped in dreadful conditions over two weeks, Todd Russell and Brant Webb were in remarkably good condition when they came to the surface.

When they finally emerged, everyone was amazed at the shape they were in from being in a very confined cage for more then two weeks. They were actually in better shape then before the accident.

It was quite remarkable – no limping, big straight-backed men, no outward physical signs of what they’d gone through.

But the medical miracle that allowed them to grow fitter and stronger in the last days of their cramped entombment was more about careful management than divine intervention.

"While it looks like a miracle, there was a lot of preparation and work that went into that," said Dr Stephen Ayre, the chief executive of Launceston General Hospital.

"The graded increase in their food was a very planned approach, and so actually improved their physical condition while they were confined in the mine," Dr Ayre said.

"It is surprising emotionally, that moment when they walked out, but when you actually look at it clinically and scientifically, we have simply produced the best outcome that we could."

In the nine days since Webb and Russell were found alive in their tiny enclosure, dietitians have controlled the food sent through their connecting PVC pipe. Their first sustenance consisted mainly of enriched drinks, progressing to egg sandwiches, icy poles, chicken soup and finally hot meals such as omelettes, transported in foil from the mine kitchen on the surface.

To combat muscle wastage and deep-vein thrombosis, the pair did exercises under the guidance of a physiotherapist. Webb and Russell took turns in the small space to stretch their legs, tense various muscles and complete deep-breathing routines.

If they had tried to walk out much earlier they would have been at severe risk of fainting and hypertension, Dr Ayre said. Even so, experts were amazed by the resilience of the trapped men.

"Their condition was better than we thought," said Tasmanian Ambulance Service superintendent, Wolfgang Rechberger.