Chile miners rescue comes to a jubilant end

People were ecstatic after the last miner, Luiz Urzua, 54, was drawn up to safety. The lengthy operation which lasted 22 hours saw each man being pulled up the shaft in the capsule called Phoenix, after which they were all taken to hospital.

Some of the men have been found to have severe dental infections while others have eye problems as a result of living in a lengthy state of dirt and darkness. One miner has been diagnosed with pneumonia, but his condition is not considered too serious.

Health Minister Jaime Manalich nevertheless stressed that all appeared to be in far better condition than expected. No-one has survived as long trapped underground.

The miners were left with only 48 hours' worth of provisions for 17 days, until rescuers managed to make through drilling. The men were trapped after part of the San Jose copper and gold mine in Chile's Atacama desert collapsed on 5 August.

President Sebastian Pinera was waiting at the head of the 624m rescue shaft at 2155 on Wednesday (0055 GMT on Thursday), when the capsule carrying Mr Urzua emerged to jubilant cheers, songs and applause. Rescuers quickly wrapped him in the flag of Chile.

Camp Hope, set up in the middle of the Atacama desert, erupted in an explosion of colour and sound the moment the capsule carrying Luis Urzua, the last of the 33 miners to be rescued, broke the surface.

The shift supervisor at the mine, credited with helping the miners endure the early days of their ordeal, then embraced the president and said: "We have done what the entire world was waiting for.”

"We had strength, we had spirit, we wanted to fight, we wanted to fight for our families, and that was the greatest thing," he said.

Describing him as a "great captain", Pinera replied: "You are not the same, and the country is not the same after this. You were an inspiration. Go hug your wife and your daughter."

The last rescuer, Manuel Gonzalez, who was also the first rescuer to go down the shaft, returned to the surface just under two-and-a-half hours later. Before leaving the underground chamber, he turned to a video camera, bowed and waved in triumph.

In a televised address to the nation at the mine entrance, president Pinera said: "The miners are not the same people who got trapped on... 5 August. They have come out stronger, and they taught us a lesson. But Chile is not the same either.”

The 33 rescued miners are now being treated in two wards at the hospital in nearby Copiapo. The rooms have been darkened to allow the men to adjust to the light.

The miners wore a "bio-harness" designed for astronauts, which monitors their heart rate, breathing, temperature and oxygen consumption as well as sunglasses to protect their eyes from the glare of the desert.