COPIAPO, Chile, (Reuters) – Chile’s 33 newly rescued miners recovered from their ordeal today while also pondering the celebrity status they have gained following a more than two-month entrapment deep under a remote desert.
Most of the miners were found to be in decent health despite being stuck in a collapsed mine tunnel since Aug. 5.
The men were resting in a hospital after being hoisted to the surface in a rescue operation watched by hundreds of millions worldwide. One of the miners had pneumonia and was being treated with antibiotics.
In a complicated but flawless operation under the South American nation’s far northern Atacama desert, the miners were hauled out one-by-one through 2,050 feet (625 meters) of rock in a metal capsule little wider than a man’s shoulders.
With much of the world transfixed by the rescue, celebrations erupted in Chile. The miners set a world record for survival underground and were welcomed as national heroes.
It took less than 22 hours from the time the first miner was brought to the surface until the last one was pulled to freedom late yesterday. About 2-1/2 hours later, the last of six rescuers who had gone down the shaft to help the miners get out also emerged from the gold and copper mine, and the operation was complete.
“It’s so incredible that they all made it out alive,” said 51-year-old Luis Pina, a miner, hugging a perfect stranger as he celebrated in the main square in Copiapo where thousands of people danced into the early hours, cheering and waving red, white and blue Chilean flags.
Despite the suffering they went through, and the emotional stress some will still face, the previously unknown miners could now have plenty to look forward to if they take up the offers open to them.
Among a flood of invitations and gifts, Real Madrid and Manchester United have invited the miners — many of whom are avid soccer fans — to watch them play in Europe.
A flamboyant local singer-turned-businessman has given them $10,000 each, while Apple boss Steve Jobs has sent them all a latest iPod and a Greek firm has offered an islands tour.
Most of the miners are unlikely to return to their old employment, with various job offers, advertising deals, and book and film contracts coming their way.
President Sebastian Pinera, whose popularity has risen over his handling of the crisis, was at the San Jose mine in the Atacama desert to greet each man as he emerged and plans to host them at his palace in the capital Santiago.
“I hand the shift over to you and hope this never happens again,” the last miner out, Luis Urzua, 54, told Pinera.
Pinera was due to visit the miners today at the hospital in Copiapo, where they are being kept in dim lighting to help their eyes adjust after spending so long deprived of natural light.
Some of the miners’ relatives who remained overnight at ‘Camp Hope’, the tent settlement they have lived in near the mine’s mouth over the past two months, also prepared to head to Copiapo to join their loved ones.
CHILEAN QUAKE
Having suffered a massive earthquake in February that killed more than 500 people, Chileans were euphoric about the happy ending to their latest challenge and proud of the technology that went into the successful rescue.
Church bells and car horns sounded across Chile in celebration, while family members and well-wishers both wept and laughed for joy outside the mine.