All 33 Miners Reach Surface

Operation goes flawlessly; rescuers still must come up
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 13, 2010 4:16 AM CDT
Updated Oct 13, 2010 7:33 PM CDT
All 33 Miners Reach Surface
No. 2: Mario Sepulveda, left, gets a hug from Chile President Sebastian Pinera.   (AP Photo/Jose Manuel de la Maza, Chilean Presidential Press Office)

They're all up. The last of the 33 Chilean miners—foreman Luis Urzua, 54—emerged just before 9pm ET after 69 days underground. (AP has details of the rescue and jubilation here and bios of the men here.) So far, no major medical problems have been reported. The first man out was followed by Mario Sepulveda, 40, who could be heard whooping for joy even before the rescue capsule reached the surface. He handed out souvenir rocks when he emerged.

The sole Bolivian among the miners shouted "Gracias, Chile!" after the rescue. The youngest of the miners, 18-year-old Jimmy Sanchez, hugged his father after emerging. Chilean President Sebastian Pinera greeted all the men as they emerged. "Welcome to life," he told Victor Segvia, the 15th miner up. Click here to read about one rescued miner's awkward dilemma between mistress and wife.
(More Chile stories.)

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