Relatives of 27 of the 33 men trapped in a Chilean gold and copper mine are suing their bosses for €7.2m.

A huge drill began digging a planned escape route today as 33 men stuck half a mile underground in Chile became the longest-trapped miners in recent history.

The first video released of the 33 men trapped deep in a Chilean cooper mine shows the men stripped to the waist and appearing slim but healthy, arm-in-arm, singing the national anthem and yelling "long live Chile, and long live the miners!".

Rescuers were preparing to lower sound-detection equipment into a northern Chilean gold and copper mine in an effort to locate 33 workers trapped there.