Dramatic Chilean mining rescue overcomes all obstacles

[News_Editor]

Dramatic Chilean mining rescue overcomes all obstacles

2010-10-15 00:49:08 GMT+7 (ICT)

COPIAPO, CHILE (BNO NEWS) -- With two extra capsules ready be used in case of an accident, the rescue effort had a projected operation time of 48 hours, but even with fears of possible panic and even heart attacks suffered by those being rescued through the narrow escape route, the 33 Chilean miners reached surface.

One by one, each miner - anxious, enthusiastic, and excited - waited his turn to step into the "Phoenix 2" capsule to emerge from 700 meters below surface and step into the light of media stardom, marking the most dramatic episode in mining accidents that ended positively.

The rescue plan worked as projected with the first capsule traveling at a slower speed, testing its strength and resistance, and the final capsules working much faster as the better fit miners were the last to be rescued.

"The feeling is of satisfaction, real teamwork in which each and every one contributed with its part," said Thursday Laurence Golborne, Chile's Minister of Mining.

Operation San Lorenzo chief Andre Sougarret broke into tears on Wednesday after the 28th miner Richard Villaroel made his way out. It was 69 days after the accident, and Sougarret did not seem to lose composure not even when the drilling efforts to reach the miners failed or when the drill lost its way down.

Villaroel came out and told Sougarret, "thank you, I'll be able to see the birth of my son." The chief operator then broke into tears.

The miners were taken to medically examined and despite suffering from skin and dental issues, Jorge Montes, Deputy Medical Director of the Copiapo Hospital said none of them had any major complication. Some had eye problems, and two have silicosis, a lung disease.

Montes said the 33 miners had a "good night," and that Mario Gomez, one of the rescued miners who was found to have pneumonia, was having positive developments. In addition, the rescued miners were in good health, did not suffer from shock, and were all anxious to leave the medical facilities. Some of them could be returning home as early as Thursday afternoon.

"We can guarantee one thing: never again in our country will we allow working in conditions so inhumane and so unsafe as happened in the San Jose mine and many other places in our country," President Sebastian Piñera said.

Shift leader Luis Urzua became the 33rd and final miner rescued from the San Jose copper-gold mine, Chile. Five rescue workers inside the mine, unfurled a poster saying "Mission accomplished Chile" after Urzua reached the surface.

Urzua, the group leader during the 69 days, was the first to speak with the authorities after they were found alive, 17 days after the collapse on August 5.

"We've shown the world the best of Chile," President Piñera said at a news conference after the last miner was rescued. "We did it the Chilean way, which means the right way," he added.

One of the dramatic moments was when former football player Franklin Lobos reached the surface. Lobos received a soccer ball, he kicked two or three times the ball and then hugged the president.

"Franklin, you won the game of your life," Piñera told him.

Mario Sepulveda, 39, the second out of the mine, shouted "Long live Chile, dam_n it!" after being rescued. He brought a bag of rocks from the bottom of the mine, one of which he gave to President Piñera.

"I was with God and was with the devil. I clung to God, I took the best hand. I always knew that God was going to take us out," said Sepulveda, in a statement to reporters who asked: "Don't treat us as artists and journalists, I want you to treat me as a miner. I want to die tied to the yoke."

The crisis began on August 5 when a part of the San José copper-gold mine in northern Chile collapsed, leaving 33 miners trapped 700 meters (2,300 feet) underground. More than two weeks later, relatives and rescue workers were shocked but relieved to find that the miners had survived and were in a good condition.

Over the next two months, rescue workers drilled several holes to eventually lower a capsule down to evacuate the miners one by one. It was a process that was initially expected to take until Christmas, if not longer, but was already completed last week.

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