Posted on 10/13/2010 8:45:33 PM PDT by malkee
SAN JOSE MINE, Chile – The last of the Chilean miners, the foreman who held them together when they were feared lost, was raised from the depths of the earth Wednesday night — a joyous ending to a 69-day ordeal that riveted the world. No one has ever been trapped so long and survived. Luis Urzua ascended smoothly through 2,000 feet of rock, completing a 22 1/2-hour rescue operation that unfolded with remarkable speed and flawless execution. Before a jubilant crowd of about 2,000 people, he became the 33rd miner to be rescued. "We have done what the entire world was waiting for," he told Chilean President Sebastian Pinera immediately after his rescue. "The 70 days that we fought so hard were not in vain. We had strength, we had spirit, we wanted to fight, we wanted to fight for our families, and that was the greatest thing." The president told him: "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." With Urzua by his side, he led the crowd in singing the national anthem. The rescue exceeded expectations every step of the way. Officials first said it might be four months before they could get the men out; it turned out to be 69 days and about 8 hours. Once the escape tunnel was finished, they estimated it would take 36 to 48 hours to get all the miners to the surface. That got faster as the operation went along, and all the men were safely above ground in 22 hours, 37 minutes.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
THANK YOU, President Obama, for your tireless efforts to free these trapped miners. Through your actions, you have proven your true commitment to the downtrodden in our society, demonstrated the principle of American Exceptionalism, and brought our country closer to the Brotherhood of All Nations.
bttt
I’m so glad they’re out. I’ve been following this story since it broke. I can’t imagine what it must have been like being trap a half mile below the surface. I’m sure the nightmares will last a long time.
I wonder if the miners have been on the clock since they got trapped.
I just freed a Kenyan Miner a few hours ago.
That guy deserve a Heineken.
I sure hope there’s a cold Heineken waiting for him.
Did we get this coverage when the miners in West Virginia died?
Sorry, but there are 300 countries in this world, can we focus on ours?
No flame. I was missing O’Reilly myself tonight. I just enjoyed reading the story. Better than a lot of the television coverage I thought, including at Fox. One note re: the story — apparently the wives AND girlfriends of some of the miners showed up at the mine.
Guess we missed coverage of the Christine O’Donnell debate. (that’s what CNN had)
>> but does Fox News need to pre-empt all coverage because of Chilean miners?
At least I learned that US personnel and tech was deeply involved in the recovery.
Thank you! I was about to say the same. I prayed for the miners’ rescue and am happy that they were, but I am sick of the over-coverage. The has become a ridiculous spectacle.
ROFL!
Who is that guy?
Which is what it would deserve at this point in a sane world.
A symbol of both prayer and effort at work.
I bet if rome2000 was trapped underground for 69 days, it would be a bigger story in his eyes. As it is, rome2000 sits at home on his ass, typing on a keyboard, pretending his life has meaning....
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.