It was the ultimate reality show seen by an estimated global television audience of one billion. For a record 69 days, 33 miners were trapped 600 metres beneath the surface of the earth in the San José gold and copper mine in Chile’s Atacama Desert. Through the wonders of modern technology, once they were located, their daily existence, their fears, their aspirations, their lives and loves – some more complicated than others – and their survival engrossed the world. Then came their amazing rescue, unprecedented in the history of one of humankind’s most dangerous industries, which began shortly before midnight on Tuesday and ended without a hitch and ahead of schedule, just under 22 hours later on Wednesday night. Indeed, after a while, the rescue effort seemed almost routine, so well planned and executed was it; but it was secondary to the climax of a local tragedy, which had become a national mission and a powerful global drama of the human spirit.
No TV show or Hollywood epic could match the miracle at San José. The tension surrounding the emergence of the first miner at 12.10 am on Tuesday, from the Phoenix 2 rescue capsule, was all the more overwhelming because we knew that this was real life, not special effects. Nor could any script-written tear-jerker provoke the emotions unleashed again and again in the course of the whole extraordinary series of extractions from the depths of the Earth. All who watched from near and far were privileged to share cathartic scenes of euphoria and that most elemental of human feelings, love, as the miners were reunited with their families. Chile is exulting; Latin America is bursting with pride and joy; and the whole world is cheering.
But the beginnings of the story were inauspicious. After the miners were buried by an underground rock fall on August 5, few people fancied their chances of survival. For 17 days, rescue workers probed for them, reportedly only continuing because relatives of the miners, mostly women, had gathered at the site, dubbed ‘Camp Hope,’ refusing to believe that their men were dead.
Then the rescuers on the surface heard a faint clanging on a drill bit far below and a message was sent up saying that all 33 miners were alive. It was a classic case of good news and bad news, however. The good news, of course, was that the miners had been found; the bad news at the time was that they would probably have to endure another four months underground before they could be safely rescued without causing another, possibly fatal, mine collapse.
But no one gave up hope, least of all Chile’s president, Sebastián Piñera, who went everywhere with the miners’ scribbled message in his breast pocket and who made their rescue a national and personal priority. The Chilean authorities mobilized all the resources at their disposal and aided by international technology and expertise, they worked resolutely and methodically towards freeing the miners.
President Piñera presented the rescue operation as a challenge to the nation and its success as a triumph for all Chileans, who, he said, are “capable of doing great things.” The political aspects of the President’s role and the boost to his personal popularity and the approval ratings of his government cannot be discounted, but his leadership was on show to the whole world and his pride and delight are justified.
As the miners ascended from their oppressively hot, tomblike existence of 69 days, to the embrace of their loved ones, they were welcomed back to life by the President, his wife and the minister responsible for mines. Indeed, their deliverance was not unlike the birth of a baby, except in this case, the miners had been to hell and back.
The multifaceted symbolism of the miracle at San José is sure to be analysed time and time again but one motif is already dominant. The rebirth of the miners has signalled the rebirth of Chile following February’s massive earthquake which claimed some 500 lives. In many respects also, the rescue effort has symbolised a coming of age for Chile, which this year became a member of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development and celebrated the bicentenary of its independence on September 18. Now, the country has 33 new national heroes, in addition to the many unsung heroes who worked tirelessly to give them back their life.
Their lives will never be the same again, but theirs has been an inspirational epic of courage and humility, of love and faith, the happy ending made possible by a combination of unbreakable will, space age technology, meticulous planning and not a little luck.
As night follows day, there will be a hangover after this nationwide party. To be sure, there are serious questions to be answered about mining safety and other occupational health and safety concerns. President Piñera has already acknowledged this and the responsibility of his government to put things right. And, of course, there will be long-term concerns regarding the physical and mental health of the 33 miners themselves. But Chile and its 17 million people deserve to bask in this moment of national jubilation and pride, as people everywhere celebrate a triumph of hope over despair, a triumph of life over death, and a magnificent triumph of the human spirit.
