down with a lot of the families, and the media as we watched florencio avalos come out, and the very first one. and i was most moved by seeing that son of his, 7-year-old vidan, who i spoke with earlier, a couple of days ago. and he was digging with his dirt trucks, as a lot of little kids as my son does also, 7 years old. and he was saying, i'm digging my own mine rescue operation to my dad. and seeing those tears as his father was then laid onto the stretcher. because, you know, their reunions are very short and sweet because they do have to get medical treatment. and you saw vidan just in tears, bawling his little eyes out. you know he wanted to make that moment, that first hug last forever. >> i've got to say, for me, the two moments that really grabbed me are, while we were waiting here in the desert with the

families, waiting for that shaft to be drilled down, i went into a mine with alfonso avalos, he's the father of that first miner who came up. he's a veteran miner. and as we went deeper and deeper into a nearby mine, he said for the first time he did not feel comfortable in there. and it reminded me that for all the miners around the world who risk their lives, that it is a brave profession, and one that probably is overlooked. and then, of course, the most emotional moment for me, watching that first capsule come up. >> amazing. >> everybody feeling the same way, like success. >> absolutely. >> success. it's just happened. it's working. so here we go. we've got some more to go throughout the night, into tomorrow. and if everything goes as planned, all 33 of those miners will finally be on the surface, and back to, well, i can't say their lives, but back to a

different life. but certainly back to the open air, and to the sunshine, and to the world that they have been so long removed from. >> and chris, just one final note here, in speaking with the families, and in their communication with the family, in communication as they've been over the last 70 days with their loved ones, they all say that these are men that have changed, many of them have shared their love letters with us. many have said, you know, the things that they write about now are very different than the man i know. and all of them really saying that they're going to be better people, that they understand truly what it means to live life to the fullest now. and you really get that sense here, that this is a moment that everybody i think takes the message from that. and that is, that you have to live each day as if it were, god

forbid, your last. but they truly know what that means now. >> and perhaps we learn from that. >> we do live in a world that is moving so fast. and in so many different directions. and isn't it wonderful that a moment that brings perhaps 1 billion people together, brings them together in a moment of such celebration, such excitement, such relief, such a thrill to see the looks on the faces of those miners who have come out of that fenix capsule into the fresh air, and to freedom once again, to be reunited with their families. kerry sanders, natalie morales, we cannot thank you enough for your really extraordinary coverage over these many hours. and i'm sure we will see you much more in the hours to come. >> we've had our fun. >> thank you. thank you. bring us back a rock, will you? preferably one with some gold in it. >> got it. i think i can arrange for that. >> you are watching msnbc's

continuing coverage of what can only be described as nothing short of a miracle. a little after 11:00 p.m. eastern time, just after midnight in chile, the first of 33 miners, florencio avalos was brought to the surface. cheers, tears, so many hugs following as the roar of the crowd overtook the scene in copiapo chile. the first miner brought to the surface that is appropriately named fenix 2. continuing our reporting live from msnbc, world headquarters in new york. joining me now from cleveland is dr. robert wolford at university hospitals case medical center. thanks so so very much for being with us. we know three of the men have been brought back into triage. they're getting the initial once-over. what will doctors be looking for?

>> just medical care to make sure they're going to be okay before they're transferred for further evaluation. >> is there sort of a standard operating procedure in terms of any kind of treatment they might get? obviously they'll want to make sure they're well hydrated. they've been monitoring them pretty closely throughout these last many, many months they've been underground. >> i would say there's no standard, since this is the first time this has ever happened. but it's certainly just basic care, vital signs, are they breathing okay, oxygenating okay. and their vital signs are the big things initially. >> i know there are some more that are going to come up. the first four we're told are among the very healthy ones. then there are ten more who are suffering with dental problems, suffering with some skin problems. do you have a sense of what that might be? >> no, not really. i suspect that it's probably

been pretty moist in the cave. they may have some fungal infections for the skin. i'm not sure what they've had for dental care. and what their dental hygiene was like before they were trapped in the mine. >> in terms of psychological, is that sort of something that is done equally and jointly with the physical medical care that they're getting? >> oh, i'm sure that there's mental health care providers right there with the physicians doing their initial evaluation. >> and does that stress -- the stress that they must have felt in those 17 days, and certainly the stress of not knowing when they would be getting out, how long it would take, does that often manifest itself in physical ways? >> oh, definitely. you know, stress really causes all sorts of symptoms, exacerbates underlying medical problems and can create a whole host of new ones. it is definitely a stress on the body, on their cardiovascular system. and really, really, this is just

unprecedented. so it's really hard to predict how things are going for them. >> i have to say as we've seen the first three miners came out, they looked very glam in the -- somebody told me they were $400 sunglasses. obviously they have to be very careful, since they've been down in the mine for 70 days. they're saying it might take two full days for them to sort of readjust to the light? >> i would think that's quite possible. i mean, i'm not sure what their lighting has been like. but i'm sure it's been very dark. and so gradually getting them back onto a normal day/night cycle, and protecting the eyes will be very, very important for them. >> and what would you think that they would be doing for them now that they're above ground in terms of nutrition? i mean, it seems to me that the humane thing to do is say what's that one meal you've been wanting. but in terms of their body recovering, and their mental recovery, what kinds of things do you think they'll be looking at? >> well, you know, i think that they've had probably high carbohydrate loading.

i'm not sure what their exact diet was. but it will be a while before their bodies are able to metabolize food i would expect. that will be gradually reintroduced to them. >> what are the things you would be watching in the days and weeks to come? could some of these problems manifest themselves after this initial examination, their initial, perhaps one, two, three-day stay in the hospital? >> i would think so. certainly this first couple days are probably the most stressful. but they're going to require careful observation just for their medical conditions over the next week or so. >> just because of all the attention they're getting and all the demands that will be put on them? >> i think so. as i mentioned, getting back into a regular day/night cycle, actually interacting with their families. i just can't imagine how they're feeling right now. >> you know, it was interesting, because when they first said that they were going to take them into triage, and then take them to a hospital and there was going to be a period of

observation, there was going to be a period of days for them to be, you know, carefully watched and monitored, some people thought, well, you know, can't you just get them right back to their families. but the families themselves seem to have some anxiety about how that sort of reemergs into normal life, and seemed grateful for the fact they were going to be so closely watched. >> i couldn't hear you. >> do you think that's a critical part of the process really over these next couple of days, sort of continuing in making sure that they have, you know, sort of a continuing healthy outlook mentally and physically, that they have this close monitoring initially? >> i think so. you know, it's hard to, you know, to understand and even think about the stresses their families have been under, and to get -- expect them to go back to a normal everyday routine is just unrealistic. it's going to take time for both the miners as well as their

families to adapt. and know how to interact with one another again. >> what would you be looking for particularly in not just the next three days, but in the weeks and perhaps beyond as each of them gets back into a more normal life? >> well, i think, you know, just as with any other stressful incident, you can have personality changes, do they have problems with anger management, how do they just interact with people. because they've only been interacting with a limited number of people. and so this is just like a post-traumatic stress disorder kind of environment. they've been under incredible stress. >> doctor, thank you so much. we do appreciate your insights. and hello to all my friends back in cleveland, in my home state of ohio. thank you so much for being with us. >> thank you. >> we're going to continue to watch this. you see that the fourth miner is being brought up. we've been talking about carlos mamani who had only been a miner

there for five days when this collapse happened. so that country holding its breath as well as chile, which has adopted him. i want to go over to thomas roberts who's been monitoring events from chile all night who is here in the studio. what are you finding out, thomas? >> chris, this is great news that we have the fourth successful miner who's reached the surface, emerging after the 15 to 20-minute ride. we can see the family there of the young man starting to celebrate there, holding bolivian flags in their hands. we've been able to really get an update about what the chilean flag is, as the men have had the chilean flag with them down below with them this whole time. the first thing they asked for. the excitement of the wife and family there of this young man. i think you were saying earlier he's only 23, 24 years old, a father of three. successfully now back to the top. they're going to get him unstrapped and let him embrace right there. you've got to love that. in the loving arms of his family

members right now who are so excited to see this young man. as we were discussing before, he is the only miner that is from bolivia. he will return as an international hero to that country. as you were saying, he's only been part of that team just five days prior to august the 5th. when they had the mine collapse. here he is now, this international hero. everyone's going to know his name. returning to bolivia, quite the sensation. his family so excited to see him. i want to give everybody a little bit of information. we've been talking a lot about the capsule named the fenix. it was the third capsule that the chilean navy had designed. it's the biggest of the three that were actually going to be sent down. when we talked about the biggest here, just to give you a little bit of a, i guess, perspective about this, it's really about 26 to 28 inches in diameter. it's very tight. and very claustrophobic for some of these men. nasa contributed a certain liquid diet for the men to drink. so that it would help with them

as they were coming up, so it wouldn't induce vomiting. because as the rescue capsule is going to be coming up from that deep, 2,000 feet down, it will rotate about 10 to 12 times through the curves that they had to create as they drilled down. chris, when i talk about the curves, it's not really that dramatic, but they are minor s-curves that the miners have to endure as they come up. here's a little graphic to illustrate exactly what the men go through, as they created the hole on the way down, and you can look at what they were having to deal with, the rock they were having to drill through. you can see the small curvature of the drill bit that's going down. and making its way successfully to the bottom. once it gets to the bottom, that's exactly what the men have to endure on the way back up. in the capsule, going back up slowly but surely. but going through those s-curves, which causes that capsule to rotate. i was given information that it will rotate about 10 to 12 times on the way back up.

small video camera was attached to the helmets there inside the actual capsule itself. so that the communication between the men and the surface was two-way at all times. and that they could also keep a close eye on the guys' faces in case they were getting into any kind of panic attack, they could talk them down from that. their pulse, skin temperature, their res separation rate is going to be constantly monitored. they're wearing a biomonitor around their abdomens. we saw one of the miners shirtless, and you could see around his entire mid-section, the white waist pack almost. that's what they're doing to keep a check on what's going on with their body temperature. they also wanted to make sure it would prevent them from blood clotting. because of the quick assent, their bodies are not used to this going back to the surface. they were also given an aspirin and compression socks. i think a lot of people out there know what those are.

to keep the blood flowing through the body. they had to wear sweaters because they would experience such a major shift in the climate from about 90 degrees fahrenheit underground to temperatures hovering near freezing after nightfall there. chris, we saw with both kerry and natalie, the reporting they've been doing the day, they're not wearing that much. tonight they're in their heavy coats, gloves on, scarves around their necks, and the other thing i want to point out as they come up, they all have to wear those very important sunglasses, because they're not used to the light. even though they're coming up at nighttime there. it's 3:00 in the morning in chile right now, they are not used to the sensitive light of just the moonlight. i think they'll have to keep their eyes covered for the next two days. >> and the overhead lights they have set up at the work site at 3:15 a.m. in chile. >> pretty much like daylight. >> carlos mamani giving the

thumbs up as he was brought back into triage. the first four that have come successfully to the surface, florencio avalos, mario sepulveda, juan illanes, now carlos mamani, all in good health. they looked in good health. they came out of the capsule with a very strong stride. we laughed at the fact that mario sepulveda fairly burst out of the capsule and was running around leading chants to the crowd. the next ten that come out will be those that have had some difficulties. a lot of them having difficulties with their teeth. some dental pain. some skin problems. the next coming up is a 19-year-old. the youngest miner. he's single, has one child. he had been studying at night school, planning to stay in the mine until september. jimmy sanchez is going to be the next one who is brought to the surface. the capsule's going to go back down now. it will be the first time that

it goes down without a rescuer. four rescuers are remaining underground. military medics who are continuing to check out the condition of what is now 29 miners waiting to be brought to the surface. we're going to take a quick break. we'll be back. angie sandevol is live in chile. >> ♪ >> ( laughing ) >> yay!

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and this is the second miner who made his way to the surface, mario sepulveda. going into his goody bag and bringing out some of the rocks from that mine, almost half a mile underground, handing them out to some of the people, and getting a hug from the president of chile. giving rocks to some of the people who had been part of this rescue. 1,000 people who at various times lent their expertise to this enterprise, including the drill which came from pennsylvania, the heart monitors that look at the blood pressure, the heart rate, the respiration of those miners on the way up that came from a company in texas. of course, the expertise of nasa, who over the years has had a lot of experience with folks in confined spaces for long periods of time. but never has there been a rescue this far underground. never have there been miners who have survived after being

trapped this long, now into the 70th day. joining us now from copiapo is angie sandoval from our sister network telemondtelemundo. i just got an e-mail, what a story. teamwork, survival, a luxury in today's world. and i get a sense that the folks in chile know that the world is watching and celebrating with them. do you think that's so? >> that is right. chile is not alone tonight on this historic day. the whole world is cheering for them and they're very happy there is a happy ending, that the operation is so far a success. indeed, chris, this day and this story is one that we will never forget. >> i can't imagine that any of us who are witnessing this will forget it, but bring us back to the here and now, because now we have seen four of these men.

they've come up to cheers. they've hugged their families. they've been taken on stretchers. many of them giving the thumbs up sign, back into triage. what's ahead for them in the coming hours and days? >> reporter: well, they will be transported by chopper, by helicopter, to the copiapo clinic. it's not far away. it's about a ten-minute flight. it's a beautiful morning. there's no fog. so, nothing is expected to go wrong. they will be thoroughly examined by doctors and they'll be staying there for 48 hours under observation. their heart, they will be checking their heart, their lungs to see what has happened to them throughout this past 69 days. after those 48 hours that they have to be at the hospital, they will be released and they will be able to rejoin their families and really celebrate.

>> i can only imagine that the world is watching and that they really are now international media stars, but back at home in chile, is it possible to overstate just how they're viewed, what heroes they are? has everyone been watching this every day, every step of the way? >> reporter: yes, everybody in chile has been watching and following this story. president pinera today, after he avbe arrived, he told the people of chile, as the rescue was going on, the churches were supposed to ring the bell every time one of the miners would come up. that's throughout the country. so, we only guess from here, from the desert, that many bells rung. the whole country was on their tippy toes, you know, watching and not being able to breathe,

you know, really ecstatic about what was happening. this is basically a miracle, they say. they have three miracles. one, when they found the men. second miracle, when they were able to, you know -- the machine from plan "b," apologize, plan "b" reached them last saturday. and now the third miracle which was to bring them to the surface. >> there are so many extraordinary things that have happened along the way. you think about 700,000 tons of rock that went down into that collapsed mine. and yet the ventilation shafts survived that collapse, which allowed them to breathe. the fact they only had two days of food and they were able to make it for 17 days until they were actually reached. and they knew there were people who were trying to rescue them and they were able to get food and water and medicine and communication. so many emotional moments along the way in this whole journey

that they have been on. but tell us a little bit about that family life that they're returning to. for example, how far away do many of them live? what are their houses like? do we know much about what their daily routine was like before all of this happened to thrust them into the personality spotlight? >> reporter: well, they come from many different parts of the country. you know, they used to do many other different jobs. one of them was a soccer star, a football player, like they call it here. then he became a miner. then there is another one who moved right after the earthquake from the south, you know, looking for a better life because their home had been destroyed. he moved here with thinks wife and son. so, you know, mining here is one of the most important industries, but the salaries are pretty low. so they lived, you know, in -- they live very simple lives.

they have a small home, they care for their families. and now, you know, after 69 days and after this tragedy, they come up and their lives change completely. you know, they face an invitation for a cruise in the greek islands. then they will be going to spain where they will be honored by the national soccer team. then they will fly to england where also they will be able to watch another soccer game. and they will be there, you know, applauded by the public. then they will fly back to chile and the ceremonies will continue, you know, for a long time. so, they face a whole new life. you know, i spoke to the psychologist who had been, you know, dealing with them and talking to them during my stay here.

and he told me that, you know, all the fame and all the money, probably it will not go to their heads. that these people have gone through so much, that down in the bottom of the earth, they really discovered what is important. that family's important, that religion, it's important, and that the simple things in life are the most important things. so, you know, the psychologist does not expect that these people will change that much. >> and we also know -- >> reporter: their lives will, but deep in inside they will not. >> i think we have all been really impressed by the way not only they have planned for this rescue, but they've planned for the aftermatha the president of chile, the folks who are running this rescue have pledged that this is not going to be a situation where they take them into triage, they check them

out, they get them in the hospital, they bring them back to their families and they just sort of let them deal with everything that's happening to them physically, emotionally, psychologically, but they plan to follow them and have help provided to them for a very long time. angie sandoval, thanks to you. i hope we see you more throughout the early morning hours now there. now 3:29 a.m. in chile. and i want to tell you a little bit about this fifth rescue, as we're watching underneath the mine and just a reminder that it's a good 90 degrees or in the 90s down there, which is why we see a lot of the guys with -- even in their boxer shorts, as it's been very hot down there. jimmy sanchez is the next one who's going to be brought to the surface. the youngest of the trapped miners. he had only planned to work in that mine until september, when it collapsed in early august. he had been studying at night school. like many of the folks down in

there, he had communication with the surface over the last month and a half. he sent a letter to his family that read in part, i'm very good. i'm not nervous yet. i believe that when my turn comes to get up on the capsule, nerves will attack me badly. but now i'm happy and calm. and so we hope he's able to remain happy and calm inside that fenix 2 capsule. again, he will be strapped in with blood pressure monitors, heart rate monitors, respirator monitors. they have oxygen. they have cameras. they have communication. there really were a couple of main concerns that were expressed by the folks organizing this. that is, mother nature is a changeable thing so they were worried potentially about some of the rocks moving, although at the top of the shaft that goes down into the mine, it is lined. now that's the least precarious part of the ride when they get toward the top. and then the concern that in

that enclosed space and all the excitement that has been building to this moment, that there might be some problems for the miners, perhaps a panic or overexcitement when they're inside that capsule. but all we have seen so far has been happiness, pure u unadulterated joy as they step into the arms of their long awaiting families and to be greeted by the president of chile. so, as we wait for jimmy sanchez, just 19 years old, to be brought to the surface, we're going to take a quick break. we will have continuing coverage throughout the night as the rescue continues on msnbc.

very cool. the capsule is down once again into that chilean mine about 4,000 feet underground -- i'm sorry, 2,040 feet you should ground, about half a mile, waiting to take that 19-year-old fifth miner, jimmy sanchez, back up to the surface. it has been an extraordinary night so far there in copiapo with four successful rescues. and they've pretty much gone off without a hitch. joining me is mining expert and author homer hickum, himself a

miner, knows about miner psychology, but more to the point, homer, it's actually your dad who invented the first of these capsules way back in 1951, is that right? >> well, that's absolutely right, chris. 1951 my dad got the idea that he had some vents in his coal mine, and he came up with these torpedo shaped tubes. if you see a picture, they're almost exactly like the ones being used tonight. and i know that he's up there looking down, feeling pretty proud about it right now. >> do you have a sense of how much they're alike and in what ways they might be different? >> well, the ones that dad designed didn't have the rollers on them, for one thing. he encased the whole entire hole all the way down, about 700 feet with steel casing. in this case they couldn't do that because of all the twists and turns. it's a neat feature with the wheels on the outside to help the tube bend and turn as it goes up and down. >> it's been described as being

a little like being in the old-fashioned mris for 20 minute. you presume if you're a miner, you're not claustrophobic. i think a lot of us at home are watching this thinking they couldn't survive it. it's about 15, 16 minutes to the surface. tell us about what they're going through on that ride up, because they can actually see the rock formations and all that, right? >> yeah. if they ever make a movie about this, it's going to be a claustrophob claustrophobia's nightmare. they can hear and feel the rock as it grates by and watch the various rock that's been laid down. if they had any thoughts of being a geologist, they'll get a great geology lesson going up through the rock. what you don't to want hear is a lot of scraping going on, any kind of friction going on. this is where the wheels come in. what can happen -- now, you know, this has been a great night. i'm happy about it coming from a

miner's family, but we've only got a few of these guys up and we have a lot more to go yet. the more times this capsule goes up and down, the more things that possibly could go wrong. but what i've seen so far with this organization that chile has put together, well, it's like nasa. what we're seeing is like a nasa mission. it's all going like clock work. obviously, everybody has thought out their role and they are playing it. the trick is to keep playing it for all 33 of these men and not let their guard down for a minute. with all this exuberance and this kind of thing, it's possible that maybe somebody will forget something. so, you can't do that. based upon what i've seen so far, i don't think it's going to happen. i think things should just go along very well until we get all of these guys out of there. >> and have you been impressed at how many people have come together? 1,000 people involved in this rescue. but we've talked about the fact

that, you know, the drill came from pennsylvania and the drillers came in from pennsylvania, and the monitors that are going to be strapped now on to jimmy sanchez as he makes that assent are from texas, and nasa coming in and consulting. when you think of the scope of how many people, how many minds, how many ideas had to be brought together to make this a success, it is almost mind-boggling, isn't it? >> it is an international effort, no question about that. chile deserves all the responsibilities. one of your reporters said earlier, well, this shows that chile is a first world country. no doubt about it. in order for a nation to be great, it has to do great things. and chile has done a great thing. not only tonight, but during the entire process of putting this whole organization together and taking their time. this is what really impresses me. they have taken their time. they've gone very sequentially step by step, tested everything until they were ready. and then they went after this.

it's showing tonight on how smoothly it's going. i wish i could remember more of my spanish when i lived in puerto rico, i learned a little bit of it. but to hear these exuberant shouts and tbetween the miners rescuers, if i knew everything they were saying, it would be -- it would be wonderful. but i certainly get the sense of what they're saying. it's all joy so far. it's just great. >> there has been nothing like seeing those miners come out with big smiles and throwing their arms around their wives. of course, that reunion with the 7-year-old son and the tears. tell us a little about the family dynamic. as you said, you were a miner. you grew up in a mining town. and i think for a lot of people who have not lived around that kind of life, it's sort of hard for them to fathom why somebody would put themselves in what seems like a precarious

situation day in and day out. give us a sense of what you think these miner families are going about. >> i wrote about a true event in my memoir "rocket boys". >> which was made into the movie "october sky". >> that's right. where my dad was trapped in a mine with several others and he had to figure out how to get them out. very much like what's happening tonight, the family has gathered around the shaft. now, the difference is, of course, there weren't any government officials, there weren't any bright lights, there weren't any tv cameras, but basically you're there and you're hoping and talking amongst each other, well, weight going to happen, what's going to happen? when they came out, my dad was horribly injured. as he came out, we clustered around him and did our very best to take him home. and that was -- that's the usual case for mining. it's usually not this well organized. and it's a matter of the family and company doctor taking care of things until the miner can

get on their feet and decide if they do this again. i can guarantee you, most of these miners go go back to work. mining gets in your blood pretty quickly. it also pays pretty well. if you want to live in this area, most of them will probably go back in the mines. what i worry about most, as mentioned, they've got all of this travel they're going to make and they're going to -- a lot of people are going to pay attention to them. they're not used to this, needless to say. the problem with these guys is going to happen when all that stops, the applauding stops. that will be difficult for some of them to kind of wrap their minds around and realize, well, okay, all of this is over. sometimes you don't know when it's over. somebody has to tell you, hey, it's over. it's time to get back to work and it's time to also pay attention to your family. so, i think -- but these guys really seem to have good heads on their shoulders. i think they're going to come through just fine. >> well, i'd like to you hold on f you don't mind staying with

us, homehomer, on skype, becaus sandra lily, one of our producers, who has kept up on her spanish. mario accesepulveda, a ham, he'd a news conference. i thought they were going to hold him back, but he's in front of the camera. >> he started out by saying -- he was very poetic. he said he was with god and with the devil at times but he held the hand of god. he said it was a wonderful country. that he was lucky to have that incredible situation, but he also went a little political. he said that he believes they have to change the labor laws in chile. >> wow. >> they have to be better with the workers. however, he really praised the professionalism of all the rescue crews, of the president. he did throw a little jab at the whole mining political situation in the accident, but he also

very much stressed the fact he thought this was a moment for chile to get together, to be united and he praised the rescuers on what they've done. >> you've been watching the chilean tv coverage all night long, really. give us a sense of what's struck you. what are they talking most about? you had said to me before and you've been sending me little notes, they're very aware that the rest of the world is watching, including the united states. >> they had a combination of hummelness and pride. they seem very humble about the fact the rescue went so well. the one thing they stressed, when the first rescuer went down, they thought he might have to come up again. he was going to scout out what was going on. it went so well they brought the first person. they were proud of the fact it went faster than they thought it would go and it went so flawlessly. they also were very proud about the fact that 36 countries, they

said, were watching, over a billion people. they stressed the fact they thought countries that had a lot of mining, england, canada, australia, were watching very closely. they showed all the newspapers. they even showed nbc. they had you on the air. it's interesting that they seem very proud of the fact that the world was watching. they also were proud of the way chile had handled the rescue. >> did he talk about how he felt? he looked great. all four of them have looked great. >> he really did. he just kept on saying he was a very, very lucky man and that he -- i love that one. at times i felt like i had the hand of the devil and the hand of god, but i chose god. like i said, he's definitely an incredible speaker already. >> i think he's got a future. definitely has a future in the media. sandra, thank you so much. i'll let you go back and listen. we'll talk to you again as we watch some of this coverage. now, we have seen jimmy sanchez get into that capsule. they're about to make the assent. do we still have homer with us? homer, are you still there?

homer, are you there? >> yes, i'm here. >> i'm just wondering, i don't know if you are able to see this because you're looking into your skype camera, but the thought of these guys getting into that capsule that was first, as we've pointed out, designed by your dad. this is a different variation, but your dad first invented this type of capsule back in 1951. what goes through your mind on a personal level? >> well, my dad actually got stuck in his halfway down, 350 feet down through solid rock the first time they tried it. they had to bring a fire truck and actually run water down. he almost drown trying to get it lubricated enough to pull it back up. they pulled it back up. he took a hammer, knocked a few dents in it, some places he felt were scraping and down he went again. he went all the way down to the bottom that time and then they brought him back up. well, my dad was the big hero of

coal until he got home. he was walking up the basement steps, my mom hit him on the face and knocked him back down. she said, don't you ever do anything like that again. he said, but that's my job. and i was walking past and she grabbed me by the collar and dragged me over and said, huh-uh, buddy, this is your job. and my dad never forgot that, i guess, because he never rode that tube again. >> what a great story. homer hickam, what a pleasure to talk to you. thank you for staying up to the middle of the night to talk to us. >> i wouldn't have missed it for the world. what a great night for all miners and mining families. this is just terrific. >> all of us who don't have mining families celebrate with you as if we are. thank you so much, homer. it's good to see you. >> thank you. >> there's the capsule. you're seeing it underground. the youngest of the miners, 19 years old, jimmy sanchez waiting to make the assent.

he had written in a letter to his family, i'm not nervous yet but i will be big time when it's my turn to come up. jimmy, it's your time. we're watching it unfold on msnbc.

51 minutes past the hour. 3:51 a.m. in chile. you're looking at a live picture. it's amazing the pictures we've been getting from chilean television, down in that mine. 2,040 feet, nearly half a mile beneath the surface of the earth after the drills came through some of the hardest rock on earth. four miners successfully brought to the surface and now we're awaiting the is assent of jimmy sanchez, just 19 years old, who was planning to stop mining

abou collapsed. was going to go back to school full time. he had been going to night school. what a change this has been for his life and for the lives of all 33 men and their families, who are emerging into a spotlight that is truly international. they've gotten so much attention. there are tons of offers on the table for them. people offering to pay thousands of dollars for interviews, hollywood producers there who want to make movies of their lives. there is a successful chilean businessman who now lives in the united states who has already deposited 10,000 american dollars into their bank accounts. so, clearly their lives have changed and will continue to change from what was a pretty simple mining life. annual wages of about 8,000 to 18,000 u.s. dollars. now being offered more than a year's salary for just that first interview. but first they've got to get to the surface. so far, so good. four successful assents. the fifth one about to get under way. joining me from cleveland is dr. robert wolford, emergency

medicine specialist at university hospitals case medical center. and also with me tonight is -- i'm sorry? yes, dr. joseph, a professor of psychiatry at new york medical college. thanks to both of you. doctor, let me start with you because i don't know if you were listening to homer hickam, but his dad designed the first capsule. he said his biggest concern is someone who has been a mining family, who wrote a story about miners that was made into a movie, is not this initial time, because there is a certain euphoria and it's the money and it's the fame and it's the attention. it's that transition back to normal life. what do you think about that? >> that always seems to be a difficult time. i think a good analogy is when people return from war. there's great celebration. the end of world war ii, something like that was a definitive ending of war. a lot of celebration.

and then what comes afterwards, after the parties and all the euphoria and whatever. oftentimes, people have a tremendous letdown and have difficulty adjusting. but hopefully -- it sound to me like they really treated these men very well, had them on routines, made sure they didn't get sleep deprived, had their circadian rhythms working by life cycles, exercise cycles, whatever. as i said previously, i think they'll do fairly well, i predict. >> dr. wolford, as dr. deltito just pointed out, they've had a lot of attention, they've had medicine, trying to get them on a schedule. there still has been concern, in spite of the fact that the first four we saw come out of that capsule, at least to our eyes, looked very good. what other things will doctors be looking for? >> well, you know, certainly as

some of them will probably have preexisting health conditions. so, it's been a very stressful environment. so, if they had heart problems, lung problems, they could, you know, really have exacerbations of those conditions. they'll be watching them very carefully for that, i'm sure. >> one of the things they've talked about, it's the reason they have these monitors on, especially during this assent, they're looking for drops or spikes in blood pressure, the possibility, i guess, when you're making that assent like that, there could be some changes in pressure, sort of a decompression type sickness. would there be the possibility of maybe a nausea? do you think they probably gave them something or some sorts of medication to help them deal with that on the way up? >> i'm not sure. you know, i know that i've read articles saying that they weren't going to do that so that the miners are maximally alert, so if they get into trouble, they're actually able to help extricate themselves. most of the anti-nausea medicines really have some

sedative effects, making then sleepy and groggy. i understand they're wearing elastic stockings. that's helping keep blood from pooling in their legs and maintaining blood pressure. i'm not sure they have to worry about decompression sickness at this level. i'm just not sure. certainly in the building of the brooklyn bridge there was problems with decompression sickness and they actually had decompression lots during at sent of thos the assent of those. >> dr. wolford, dr. deltito, you'll stay with us. we thank you for that. we'll continue to watch. we're waiting for the fifth of the 33 miners to be brought to the surface. 19-year-old similarmy sanchez, the next to be greeted by his family and the many people who

have gathered there, who have helped in this rescue. it is 56 minutes past the hour. we'll take a quick break.