>> glor: tonight, breakthrough-- that rescue tunnel has reached those 33 trapped chilean miners but they're still days away from being pulled to the surface and serious risks do remain. i'm jeff glor. also tonight, heir apparent. north korea prepares to introduce their new leader. working longer-- why some older americans say they face a painful future in washington raises the retirement age. and beatle birthday, remembrances of john lennon around the world on what would have been his 70th birthday. ♪ all we are saying, is give peace a chance ♪ captioning sponsored by cbs

this is the "cbs evening news" with jeff glor. >> glor: good evening. the site surrounding those 33 trapped miners in chile is called cam hope, and tonight there's no hope for family members. this morning, drirls broke through to a chamber where the man have been waiting six days to be rescued. still, plenty of work remains. setting doane joins us from copiapo, chile. >> reporter: it was an exciting and emotional day here at the san jose mine. at times it seemed you could almost feel the energy in the air. that's because many woke up to the news they'd been waiting f for. the sound of success-- a signal that after 33 days, the drill finally broke through. to the 33 trapped men. that moment came while we were live on the "early show" this morning. horns honking.

i have no idea if the microphone can pick it up, but this is---- it would appear they have broken through. spontaneous celebrations erupted with people running to the hillside. where 33 flags were planted when the miners were first discovered back in august. "i'm so happy i can't contain my heart," maria segovio told us. we first met her last week as she held vigil from a small camp she set up. she's been here ever since she learned her brother was trapped. for a while, she even slept upright in a chair. you've lived here. you've been here for two months. how is it to have this day come? "it means we're one step closer to fulfilling our promise," she told me. "we all said we would stay here until my brother and all the others were out so we could go home together."

chile's mining minister celebrated what he called a landmark and with him an american from denver, jeff hart, called from another job in afghanistan. he was in charge of the plan b. drill, one of three drilling rescue operations in place at the mine. >> we had a video. we could actually see from the mine the tool come through into the mine. we knew we had contact. unbelievable. there's no-- there's no explanation for that emotion. >> reporter: and at the time of contact, hart was steering the drill. >> it's not an easy formation to drill. it's dream exrooemly difficult. >> reporter: and you're feeling right now at this moment? >> on top of the world. honestly, we're-- we're really glad that that part of it's over. that's the hardest part. >> reporter: but there is still a lot of work ahead. rescue workers stand the tunnel today to try to determine whether or not they need to add a protective lining, and that is still under consideration. jeff. >> glor: but, seth, if they do that protective casing, we know if it happens it's going to be very complicated, right? >> reporter: indeed.

that's correct. it was explained to me that in a way the engineers needed to go in almost at an angle, and then they make almost a turn to go straight down to where the miners are, and that turn is the tricky part. it looks likely they line the first 300 or so feet but whether they get the casing through the rest of the shaft is not yet known. >> glor: in north korea tonight, the intrigue continues as the country is set to stage a massive military parade marking the 67th anniversary of the communist ruling party. more importantly, they may introduce the nation's next leader. our national correspondent jim axelrod is on the ground in north korea in pyongyang. he joins us on the phone. jim, good evening. >> reporter: good sunday morning here, jeff. it would seem from the pageant i attended last night where kim jong il appeared alongside his son kim jung un, that there is

something big going on here. this is the first public appearance we've seen of the father and the son since word has started to spread that perhaps kim jung un would be designated as the successor to kim jong il. a massive parade is scheduled for today, 16,000 troops, weapons put on display, and more importantly, the western media has been invited in to take a look at this. they clearly want to put kim jong il and and kim jung un in e public spotlight, which, as you know, is extremely rare, if not entirely unprecedented. >> glor: and, jim, there's been much discussion with about how this will increase the tension if and when this handover takes place, not just with south korea but also the u.s. >> reporter: well kim jung un is a complete unknown commodity so nobody knows how this is going to transfer in terms of what this does to the geopolitics of the region. >> glor: and, jim, so much focus here, not just because kim

jong il is such a reclusive and at times odd leader but also because he's the reclusive leader of an aspiring nuclear power. >> reporter: that has been the subject of a lot of provocation, a lot of back-and-forth. if you're talking about a new leader that nobody knows anything about, but putting the successor into place marks a not only succession in terms of a family dynasty, but also seems to suggest a certain continuity of what's been a policy that's been very hard for, certainly the western world and the regional allies here in asia, to sort of get a handle on. >> glor: jim axelrod in pyongyang, north korea, tonight. jim, thank you very much. here in new york city tonight, there is outrage over an alleged hate crime. police have eight suspects in cuft and are looking for one more in the brutal torture and sexual assaults of three men, two of them teenagers. sean hennessey has more. >> reporter: these young members are accused of targeting and torturing two teenagers and

a 30-year-old man because they were gay. >> these suspects had employed terrible wolf pack odds of nine against one. >> reporter: the three victims were lured separately sunday to an apartment where they were stripped, beaten and robbed. the two 17-year-olds were not only tortured themselves but police say one of them was later forced to punch the man in the face and burn him with a cigarette. >> the man was beaten for hours and dumped outside of his home. >> reporter: it was the latest tragic incident involving teens singled owz because they were gay. just last month, rutgers freshman tyler clementi took his life after a roommate streamed video of him having sex with another male. in the wake of the violence and tragedy, the gay community is taking to the street. >> i sat there paralyzed and then, of course, you cry. >> reporter: in 2008, crimes related to sexual orientation rose 11%, suggesting the problem is getting worse. >> these are things that happen to me every day. >> reporter: ki kim joey kemmerg

has been bullied and even received death threats. >> school has gone from a place of education to a place of survival. >> kids are out there living with the thought that there's something wrong with them and that suicide is the only option, or there's individuals out there that think it's okay to violently attack and sodomize someone because they're gay. >> reporter: in the meantime, some are tired of the attacks, tired of waiting for change. short term, does it get any better? >> i don't think it's going to get any better, and i'm going to tell you why. the gay community is mad as hell sp we're going to go out and there and we're going to fight back. >> reporter: the eighth suspect in the torture case turned himself in today but new york city police say they are still looking for one more. sean hennessey, cbs news, new york. >> glor: in washington state, a dozen young women overdosed at a party and rusked to the hospital last night, and now police in the college community of rosalyn are investigating to see if they were victims of spiked drinks. stacey sakamoto of our seattle

affiliate has more. >> reporter: good evening, jeff. here at central washington university, students and administrators are trying to figure out how this all happened. police tell us that about 50 people were at a house party in the town of rosalyn when 12 of them overdosed on something. investigators found out when someone called from a safeway store, reporting there was an unconscious woman in the backseat of a car. they were told there were other people in similar shape at the party. police say the party-goers reported having a dring or two and that wasn't consistent with the level of intoxication so investigators suspect a date rape drug may have been used. >> the majority of victims targeted were females so the suspicion initially is they potentially were targeted for some nefarious reasons. >> reporter: tonight, three people are still hospitalized. reporting in ellensburg, washington, stacey sakamoto, for cbs news.

>> reporter: in hungary, officials today ordered more evacuations after the prime minister wander the wall of an industrial reservoir might collapse without warning. that could trigger a second wave of thick toxic sludge in what's already the country's worst ecological disaster ever. >> reporter: further collapse of this reservoir could unleash another torrent of toxic sludge on villages in hungary. the government said engineers are racing to protect low-lying areas to slow the mud in case of a second rupture, and the prime minister has warned the cracks in the wall are widening and could give away at any minute. >> it's in very bad shape, and our estimation is that could fall, could fall down. it's very likely it will happen. >> reporter: hungarian police are taking no chances, helping residents flee from nearby villages any way they could. if the dam does come down, a second spill would send about two-third the amount of poisonous water that swept through villages when the

reservoir first burst its banks on monday. at least seven people have been killed and more than 150 injured. the caustic, corrosive slunl has caused eyes and skin to burn. cleanup crews have had to wear protective suits and face masks. hundreds of residents have been made homeless by the toxic red deluge that polluted land and water for miles. it's unclear when or even if these people will be allowed to return home. >> it's not just a question of would you like to live here or you would like t live somewhere else? but it's a question of is it safe enough in the future? >> reporter: hungarian police have confiscated documents from the company responsible for the waste reservoir. the prime minister has vowed that someone will answer for the catastrophe. charlie d'agata, cbs news. >> glor: still ahead, the california governor's race getting even muddier.

>> glor: the race for california governor this year has been ugly, expensive, and extremely close. and this week, it got even more contentious as jerry brown's campaign faces harsh criticism over some very earthy language used against his opponent, meg whitman. ben tracy has more from l.a. >> i don't have to tell that you we have an exciting election coming up in 25 days. >> reporter: cowting the latino vote at an award ceremony in newport beach, california, friday night, meg whitman stayed on message. >> and you know what, we're going to win this thing. >> reporter: she did not mention the controversy surrounded her opponent, jerry brown. in a tape leaked this week, a brown campaign strategy session was caught on an answering machine after the candidate thought he had hung up. on it, someone refers to meg whitman as a whore.

the brown campaign says it was an aide who used the slur, not brown himself. they were referring to whitman's attempts to grab the endorsement of the police officer union. brown apologized to whitman for the "salty language" but her campaign isn't ready to forgive. >> it's an insight into jerry brown's campaign, how he deals in backrooms when nobody is listening, when he thinks nobody is listening, when he thinks nobody is watching. and, you know, it's an insult to not only meg whitman but to all californians. >> reporter: just 24 hours after the tape went public, the national organization of women endorsed brown, and a local representative shockingly inferred that whitman has politically prostituted herself to gain endorsements. >> that meg whitman was willing to sell out californians for that endorsement was whorey behavior. >> reporter: whitman, the former c.e.o. of e-bay, has now spent nearly $120 million of her

own money on her campaign, yet in a recent poll, she is still trailing brown, who has 50% of the vote among likely voters. >> we're choosing a governor. shouldn't character matter? >> reporter: yet brown has campaigned on character and the whore comment is way off message. however, it's a boon to whitman who has been dogged for a week now by the revelation that she employed an illegal immigrant as a housekeeper and then fired her. this as both campaigns compete for latinos, who many expect to decide this tight and increasingly nasty contest. ben tracy, cbs news, los angel angeles. >> glor: just ahead on tonight's cbs evening news, the retirement age may be going up, and for many, they say it might be a backbreaker.

>> glor: many workers approaching retirement will have to wait until they're nearly 67

to gain full social security benefits and more increases in the retirement age seem inevitable, not a happy prospect for many older americans after dengades on the job. tonight anthony mason has more. >> reporter: 62-year-old joe bergola has been putting his back into it for nearly 40 years. >> this job involves a lot of bending. it takes its toll. , you know, year in and year out. i have to pick up this whole thing myself. just too many aches and pains. >> reporter: according to a new study, one in three americans over 58 is working at a physically demanding job. many, like ber goal alook forward to retiring with full social security benefits. >> i have two sons and i have two grandchildren, and i i just want to spend more time with them. >> reporter: but with 70 million boomers at or approaching retirement, many are worried that social security is at risk of long-term insolvency. the white house has created a

panel to look at changes, including increasing the retirement age. >> we will soon have a system in which about close to one-third of the adult population will be retiring for about one-third of their adult lives on social security. >> reporter: house minority leader john boehner is in favor of retirement starting at age 70. not so fast say critics. >> raising the retirement age is a bad idea because it cuts benefits for people who need them the most. >> reporter: in fact, the new study says, the groups most affected by a higher retirement age are the very ones social security was originally designed for-- low wage earners, less educated workers, those in poor health or in physically strenuous jobs. >> if they force me to work to 70, i'll probably die before i get to receive any kind of social security. >> reporter: at this point, bergola will tough it out until he gets full benefits at 66, but

working longer can be debilitating for all groups. 29% of work erms aged 55-60 said they experienced chronic pain in their jobs, and nearly half said they had arthritis. >> we're forgetting many of the reasons why people are living longer is because they're able to retire earlier. >> reporter: the proposed changes will likely affect people who are at least 20 years from retirement. so for joe bergola, the days spent spoiling his grandchildren are only a few years away. anthony mason, cbs news, new york. >> glor: we'll be right back.

>> glor: a frightening scene in the baltic see as a ferryboat was engulfed in flames following an explosion. 249 people were on board.

all of them were rescued. the ferry was headed from germany to lithuania. officials are investigating what caused the explosion but they have ruled out a bomb. in what may be a first, a california sea lion has undergone plastic surgery. that sea lion, sergeant nevis, was shot in the face last year by a fisherman, leaving two gaping holes. the surgery to repair the wound may save his life. he can hopefully, once again, dive to find food. coming up, they imagined and remembered on john lennon's birthday.

>> glor: for many of his admirers, john lennon remains forever young, fixed in time following his murder in 1980. the former beatle would have turned 70 today, and his birthday was celebrated around the world. tony guida has more ♪ all you need is love ♪. >> reporter: from around the world they came, some for whom john lennon's music was the soundtrack of their adolescent,

some born years after lennon's voice was silenced. all together at strawberry fields in manhattan's central park to celebrate a man who still matters 30 years after his death. >> i remember him as a maverick, as a rebel ♪ give peace a chance ♪. >> reporter: in liverpool, lennon's birth place, his first wife, cynthia, and son julian, celebrated lennon's life with a sculpture called peace and harmony. >> to honor dad and pray for peace. >> reporter: near reykjavik, iceland, lennon's widow yoko ono and ringo starr honored lennon's birthday with the lighting of a tower ohno creating. it's called "imagine peace." ohno said lennon would be fighting for it still. >> i don't think that he would have retired. he is not the retiring type. >> reporter: but lennon remains the type that merchandisers can only cream of. all of his solo albums have been re-released a new couplary

chronicles his years, and the movie "nowhere boy." lennon stuff, says a music editor, is timeless. >> this was somebody who from a very young age was writing songs like "help," and "in my life," and i'm a loser." >> reporter: alan light of "rolling stone" brought his seven-year-old son to central park to remember lennon. light said lennon achieved immortality by showing how mortal he was. >> i think what people still respond to is the honesty and the combination of confidence and vulnerability ♪ don't let me down ♪. >> reporter: songs by a young man who will never grow old. imagine. tony guida, cbs news, new york. >> glor: that is the cbs evening news tonight. i'm jeff glor, cbs news, in new york. good night.

captioning sponsored by cbs released from an iranian hy a u-c berkele >> i don't know when my life will be normal again. back in the bay area after being released from an iranian prison. why a uc berkeley graduate and her feasm -- her family are now wearing these strings. a manhole explodes on a busy bay area street. what one witness says happened just before the blast. looking overhead says it all. fleet week. cbs5 is next. ,,