Twelve of Chile's 33 trapped miners were hoisted to safety in a cramped rescue capsule on Wednesday, cheering and punching the air as they hugged their families after two months deep underground.One by one, the miners climbed into the capsule, which is barely wider than a man's shoulders and equipped with a gas mask and escape hatches, and took a roughly 15-minute journey through 2,050 feet of rock to freedom.
Scenes of jubilation erupted every time a new miner arrived at the surface of the San Jose gold and copper mine in Chile's northern Atacama desert.
Rescuers plan to pull all 33 men to the surface within the next 36 hours, and possibly even quicker.
While the first to be rescued were in good shape, some have been struggling with illness and are more fragile.
Mario Gomez, at 63 the oldest of the miners, suffers from silicosis and was breathing from an oxygen mask as he reached the surface. He was helped out of the capsule, and immediately dropped to his knees to pray with his yellow hard hat still perched on his head.
Euphoric rescuers, relatives and friends broke into cheers -- and tears -- as the miners emerged to breathe fresh air for the first time since the mine collapsed on Aug 5.
"This is a miracle from God," said Alberto Avalos, the uncle of Florencio Avalos, a father of two who was the first to emerge, shortly after midnight.
The miners have spent a record 69 days in the hot, humid bowels of the mine and, for the first 17 days, they were all believed to be dead.
Their story of survival and the extraordinary rescue operation have captured the world's attention.
The operation was executed almost flawlessly through the night and included dramatic live images of miners hugging rescuers in their tunnel deep inside the mine. An estimated 1,500 journalists from around the world were at the mine to report on the rescue.
Chilean President Sebastian Pinera waited at the mouth of the rescue shaft to greet and hug the men.
'GOD AND THE DEVIL'
Mario Sepulveda, the second miner to escape, had everyone laughing when his whoops of joy resounded on the surface even before he arrived. He then stepped out of the capsule, opened up a yellow bag, pulled out souvenir rocks from below and began handing them out to the rescuers and even Pinera.
"I'm so happy!" Sepulveda yelled, grinning, punching his fist in the air and hugging everyone in sight. However, he also sounded a darkly serious note.
To follow: Carlos Barrios, Victor Zamora, Victor Segovia, Daniel Herrera, Omar Reygadas, Esteban Rojas, Pablo Rojas, Dario Segovia, Yonni Barrios, Samuel Avalos, Carlos Bugueno, Jose Henriquez, Renan Avalos, Claudio Acuna, Franklin Lobos, Richard Villarroel, Juan Aguilar, Raul Bustos, Pedro Cortez, Ariel Ticona, Luis Urzua
Source: List given to miners' families
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