o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o to all of you in the west, welcome to a human story for the agency, playing out in real-time. all night, the eyes of the planet have been focused on this tiny slice of chilean desert where moments ago the fourth of the 33 trapped miners was lifted to safety and embraced by his tearful family. four up, 29 to go. all happening right now. tonight on "nightline." miracle at the mine. incredible scenes of joy and relief in northern chile. as the first miners emerge after an unprecedented 69 days trapped

underground and we are right there live. free at last. one by one, the miners take this tube to freedom and we're there to witness the unprecedented effort to save them all. the greatest rescue, a special extended edition of "nightline" starts right now. >> announcer: from the global resources of abc news with cynthia mcfadden and terry moran in new york city, and bill weir live from the san jose mine in chile. this is "nightline," october 12, 2010. >> good evening to all of you on the west. i'll bim weir. thank you for joining us for what is really an undescribable spectacle, the sort of live television event not seen in recent memory. for the last few hours, we have been watching men, one after the other, load into a small rescue pod and lifted from nearly a half mile below the earth's crust. these are men, thanks to cameras

way down there, these are men we've been watching who were feared dead for more than two weeks, rising back into the world of the living. their will to survive launched an unprecedented feat of engineering that included engineers from nasa and drilling experts from pennsylvania and the collective goodwill of an entire nation, even an entire continent. families now are gathered, celebrating, more families are waiting for their loved ones to emerge. others are being taken to the hospital. really a state of the art clinic that's been built in the middle of nowhere to tend to the medical needs of these men, but so far, we haven't seen any signs of ill stress. the first two men to emerge seemed healthy, neck eck, even leading the crowd in some cheers, but the precautions are there as well. but the anxious party in the desert is still young tonight. this is the first man rescued. by 10:00 eastern time.

counting the rescuers who went down after them, there are still 32 men buried a half a mile under that dangerous rock, but a moment that the spirits are lifted with the proof that the impossible can be done. just after 10:00 p.m. eastern, manuel gonzalez steps to the brink of the shaft. he's the first of five rescuers who will descend a half mile down to the miners below. a good luck wish from his president -- climbs into the pod and is lowered into the earth. after a after a ten-minute descent, gonzalez reaches the cavern and is grated by giddy miners. he's the first new human they've had contact with in ten weeks. a sign that their long ordeal is about to end.

gonzalez is among the rescuers who will now stay down in the mine sending each man up as quickly and safely as possible until they've all come home. but the arrival of silva is the moment the world has been waiting for. he's the first of the 33 to breathe fresh air for the first time in ten weeks. then comes the emotional reunion with his wife and son. then a bear hug from the president of his country and his rescue would be the culmination of a global effort of diggers, doctors, psychologists and engineers from around the globe. and as the first rescued enjoys his first moments of freedom,

the second rescuer descends. with his wife anxiously looking on, just after midnight, mario sepulveda is lifted from underground sunreleased from the cage. in a surprising gesture, he brought up a bag of goodies from down below, rocks he collected to give out to rescue workers and the chilean head of state. he then played cheerleader to the excited supporters, leading the crowd in the chilean chant. [ chanting ]

the preparations have been long and painstaking. the escape capsule designed by nasa refined and built by chilean submarine engineers is called fenix, named for the mythical bird the that rises from the ashes and at 5:30 eastern, it is moved to the escape hatch, an hour later, just before sundown, the chilean president inspects the creation. shaped like a 13-foot cigar tube, designed to fit in a hole the size of a bicycle tire and travel a half mile to miners below with minimal friction. at 7:05, they announce a two-hour delay in the extract shun launch, two more hours of agony for families at camp hope, two more hours of reflection for avalos silva, deemed most technically savvy and mentally and physically fit, he was chosen to rise first in case the worst happened. a rock could fall. wedge the pod in the shaft.

a cable could get hung up. or the rig that pulls the cable could overheat. there is the psychological toil, cameras trained at his face, watching for signs of stress or panic. among the physical worries below, eye damage caused by darkness, partially collapsed lungs from shallow breathing and fungal and skin diseases because of the extended time in 90-degree humid temperatures. to minimize these ailments, the miners were drinking salt water to alleviate nausea, possible fainting during the ascent. what astronauts call a fluid loading protocol for dealing with sub gravity. they've also been given antianxiety medication to help them from panicking on the way up. that ride is risky. at 8:30 p.m., a first test. the empty capsule is lowered into the shaft to great excitement. rescue workers are inspired to sing a popular national chant heard over and over at soccer games. "come on, come on, come on,

chileans," it means. "tonight we have to win." but they have changed that last line, "we have to get them out." this as buses unloaded family members at the scene preparing to reunite with trapped loved ones amid balloons and songs. 20 minutes later the capsule returns to the surface. the first test successful. ♪ ♪ even chilean president pinera is even chilean president pinera is moved to song in a nearby tent where family members anxiously wait. then the pulley wheel is in motion again. a welcome sight, rescue pod is lowered into the ground for a second time, this time to check communication devices. the test succeeds. but the mission continues, a third worker goes down and at 1:07:00 a.m., a third miner is free.

juan illanes gets the reception, the hugs we expect to see tonight and tomorrow. the next young miner in line is one of the more tragic stories. he's a 19-year-old, jimmy sanchez and by all accounts, he's had the toughest time psychologically ever since the collapse ten weeks. the first four men were chosen to go first because of their physical and mental well-being in case something went amiss on those early extractions. now we're getting into the men who are in dire need of getting out of there as quickly and safely as possible and that gives you a glimpse into this young man's young mind, he said, i suffer a lot. i don't want to suffer anymore. it was actually 34 of us down here because god never left our side. there's been such heartfelt communications going back and forth through the bore hole to get food, medicine, vitamins and vital communication to these men

and throughout the night, we'll be talking about these poignant stories. they say there are 8 million stories in the naked city. there are a lot more than 33 stories than at the bottom of this mine. each one of them is bringing a smile and a tear as they come up to the surface. much more from the mine in chile when "nightline" returns. ♪ [ male announcer ] you're at the age where you don't get thrown by curve balls. ♪ this is the age of knowing how to get things done. ♪ so why would you let something like erectile dysfunction get in your way? isn't it time you talked to your doctor about viagra? 20 million men already have. ♪ with every age comes responsibility. ask your doctor if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain, as it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure.

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welcome back to this extended version of "nightline." live on the west coast, jeffrey kofman is abc's man in latin

america. you've been covering the story since they were miraculously discovered alive 17 days after the cave-in. this country and continent is captivated by them and we're getting to know these men as carters even though there's a half mile of rock between. >> i arrived here august 23rd, the day after they were found alive and so many people assumed this was going to be another tragic death, series of deaths in latin america and the family patience and the rescuers' persistence paid off. then, they had to figure out how to get them out in what is the most challenging, technically complex underground rescue ever undertaken. there was no playbook. >> no book. >> i'm looking at this image as they go down to pick up the fifth miner, they're already a number of images i think will endure really forever and this is one of them. it's like this rocket was blasted into the earth's core to pick these men up, red, white and blue, the colors of chile's flag.

>> you brought up a great parallel which is we haven't seen this kind of drama played out for the world to watch since the apollo missions. >> april, 1970, that's right. and i was too young to remember it, but i think that the world was on edge in a similar kind of way. and the parallels are actually incredibly strong because then, there was no playbook, either, and they had to invent the science to get those astronauts back to earth. and even though 2,000 feet seems like a lot less than the moon, the technical challenges really were staggering and it took them seven weeks to do it. they just had to start and say, what do we do? first of all, we had to keep them alive -- >> and sane. >> and sane, that's right, and healthy in an incredibly oppressive environment and then, we've got to get them out and they did it. >> they did it. you get to know some of these characters along the way. the one who came out second on the list is sepulveda. mario supple vade a was ecstatic and bear-hugging. >> has become one of the

characters and he spoke, to our surprise, and let me read you a translation of what he said. in public. on national television here in chile. he said, "i was with god and i was with the devil, but god won. at no point in time did i doubt that god would get me out of there." he's one of the characters we got to know from above ground. >> together, the miners of the san jose mine have been a living testament of survival. not only has their nearly 70-day ordeal captivated the world, but so have the individual stories, a story played out in front of billions with no shortage of melodrama and characters all set against the backdrop of the epic rescue effort. nothing this deep or complex has ever been tried before. among the men who have been waiting 2,300 feet below the surface for tonight is jimmy sanchez, the youngest in the mine at 19 years old. he only started working in the san jose mine a few months ago after quitting school to support his pregnant girlfriend.

his father, juan, now building a new addition to his house for the family says, among all the miners, jimmy is the most emotional distraught. "he was afraid he was going to die of hunger," he says," he's been having nightmares down there and crying himself to is sleep." after the miners were found back in august, we met liliana ramirez, the wife of the oldest miner. the frame held a letter he had sent her. >> dear lila, i am okay, thank god. i hope to get out soon, patience and faith." he's worked in the mine since he was 12. his lungs damaged by 50 years of inhaling silicon dust. we met her again. i'm anxious and happy, happy this nightmare is coming to and end. her husband is set to be the ninth miner pulled up tonight. they divided themselves into three groups, the 105, the ramp and refuge named after the parts of the mine where they were

sleeping. they didn't compete, they just rotated responsibilities. some even found themselves in key roles. johnny barrios, armed with a few months of medical training, has been acting as a group medic, giving medical advice to fellow miners, but when he got pulled up, he's got answering to do. for five years, he's had a mistress. the sordid details have made international news but could becoming to an end. his wife has had enough. >> at one point, he sent a letter i read two days ago and said, i would like to have both of you there when i come out and the lady says, you know, i love myself too much. i have learned a lot about myself in these two months and i'm not going to be humiliated in public. >> but for other miners be, it seems like the disaster has had the opposite effect, one man proposed to his partner of 25 years, although they're legally married and have three children, they couldn't afford a church wedding. he wrote her a letter saying,

when i get out, let's buy that dress. we'll get married. claudio ianes had the opposite problem, despite years of asking, his girlfriend refused to marry him. not surprisingly, all that has changed. i accept your proposal and didn't want to say no, and i said, okay, my love, when i get out, we'll get married. the last man out of the mine will have to wait to meet his newborn daughter, esperanza. his wife said, i've been trying to remain calm because it's not easy to be pregnant in a situation like this but i had to do it for our other children and for me. when the big moment arrived, the birth was recorded on a video camera so ariel could watch it deep underground. while the men organized themselves underground, a different kind of order popped up above ground just outside the mine gate. they called this camp hope. let me show you one of the areas

where the families have spent the last 69 days. this is just a cluttered area at the base of the mine where they put up tents. you can see this flag, it says, "strength to the miners." "chile without miners isn't chile." over here is where some of the families have been living. you can see some of the kids as they await the end of the day drawing with crayons, balloons here. most of the time you could come in and sit down and have tea with the people and talk to them about the hardship and horror of what their husbands, fathers and sons have been going through. but tonight, it was just joy as mario sepulveda was the second man saved. he has become a bit of a celebrity across chile where he's become known as just the presenter. taking command in trust camera, he narrated the video tour of their subterranean prison, now apparently several tv stations are waiting for him to surface to bid for hess newfound talents. and the man with the longest wait is 54-year-old luiz urzua,

the team's foreman. he managed to get his men to work together during their almost ten weeks underground and he managed to keep them sane. >> they felt natural the guy in charge was him. >> he parse elled out the meager meals they found in the emergency shelter after the collapse. each man was allowed two teaspoons of tuna, half a glass of milk and half a biscuit every two days. that may have have been what saved their lives. he'll wait until all the men are lifted to safety before he takes the ride out sometime tomorrow. as admirable as the persistence, tenacity of these miners is, i think you have to give credit to their families. many have been here camped in tents in this very cold, desert climate. from the beginning, i talked to the sisters of one of the trapped miners and i said to

them, how long have you been here? they said, from the beginning. and i said, what do you mean? they said they arrived the day after the mine collapsed because they live far away and i said, well, how many nights have you spent away from here since then? and they said, not one. we've been here, we've waited, and we're going to see him. it really speaks of a family strength and spirit and you can understand why these men really wanted to fight to get out. >> if anyone out there has even a touch of claustrophobia, your heart goes out to the young man being lifted right now by that flywheel, jimmy sanchez, the 19-year-old took the job to support his baby daughter. we'll keep an eye on his rescue and all the rest as "nightline" finance after this. in the middle of the night, why go one more round ? you don't need a rematch, but a rethink. with lunesta. lunesta is thought to interact with gaba receptors

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we welcome back to the chilean mine rescue playing out live as we speak. we welcome now, emma sepulveda, a chilean by way of nevada, you're so compelled about the story you've come to write a book. >> i've written before about women in chile under chavez, husbands and -- >> this is a story that no one could -- >> absolutely, absolutely. >> and you've gotten to know the families and one of the men sort of lost in the shuffle of this, the first man came to the surface, florencio alvarez. you got to know his mother. his brother is waiting to be rescued. what are they going through?

>> you know, until they have both of their sons, i think they're going to be extremely nervous and anxious. the mother's a very humble lady. stay at home taking care of the kids and raise them. the father was a miner. i mean, yeah, the father of avalos. i spent time with them and heard stories about the mining in chile and how dangerous some of the mines are, how he himself had two close calls and that didn't stop him electric inspiring his son to be a miner. they still think it's a great job. >> the let me ask you what must be a difficult question for the families involved. i know a number of several dozen of the miners have joined together in a lawsuit against not only the mining company, but the government for lack of inspections and oversight, the same people who are rescuing them. >> yes. >> ultimately at the end of

their lawsuit, how are the families feeling? do they blame anyone for this? are they angry? >> yes. most every interview that i have done, first, there's a really sense of frustration. a lot of them, the husband or in this case, the son came home saying, you know, i don't think the mine is safe. you know, i think there's something going on and, you know, even some wife said that one of the miners says, i just don't want to go to work this week and the wife said, well, we need the money. you have to. it was that sense of something is going on. >> right. >> it was a, you know, a sense of anger, you know, why they didn't protect them, why they went to work and this happened. >> right. at least tonight, the focus is on a jubilant rescue. i'm sorry to cut you off, we have to hit our break but so much more coming up from the extended "nightline." stay with us.