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American Morning
Trapped Miners' Rescue; Some American Companies Contributing Equipment to Chilean Miner Rescue Effort; Miners Rescued: 11; Tiny Guardian Angel
Aired October 13, 2010 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning. Thanks so much for joining us on this "AMERICAN MORNING," a special edition of it for this Wednesday, October 13th. I'm John Roberts.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Kiran Chetry. Thanks so much for being with us.
It's been a morning of following breaking news but of the wonderful, emotional sort which is quite rare in our business. And probably for many of you out there, as well. We are watching from Chile right now where the mine rescue well underway. Hours underway now, and it's been a success so far. They're sending that Phoenix capsule back down and prepping to bring miner number 11, Jorge Galleguillos back up to the surface. A half mile underground where these miners have been for 69 days.
Just moments ago, we watched as Alex Vega, the tenth miner pulled to freedom. Got a nice hug and a kiss from his wife and then headed on the gurney to get checked out medically. Each man's journey to safety in that capsule takes about 15 minutes. So, still, 23 men more to go.
ROBERTS: Yes. With tearful family members looking on, the first of the 33 Chilean miners, 31-year-old Florencio Avalos made the 2,000- foot journey through the tube to freedom. That was about 11:00 p.m. Eastern last night. He was one of the men behind the camera underground, wore sunglasses to protect his eyes from the glare of the bright lights after spending more than two months underground.
CHETRY: And an hour later, the second miner, Mario Sepulveda, the one they're calling Super Mario this morning because of his exuberant reaction after coming out of the mine was the second one out. After that, all morning long, miner after miner, emotional, spiritual, energy-filled reunions. And by all account, a flawless rescue.
ROBERTS: Number 10, Alex Vega, came up just a short time ago.
Our Karl Penhaul, who's more -- one of more than 1,000 journalists from the around the world covering this unprecedented mine rescue was among his family. He's live on the scene in Copiapo this morning.
And, Karl, what an emotional scene as we saw Alex Vega's family reacting. I guess they were watching it on television monitors when he came up out of the ground -- pretty incredible.
KARL PENHAUL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Alex Vega's wife and father and mother up at the mine head, but here, his sister-in-law and also Alex Vega's brother. I just want to ask --
(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
PENHAUL: I'm just telling Jonathan, Alex Vegas's brother, I knew his father, Jose, a great man.
(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
PENHAUL: I said to Jonathan, did you ever lose hope that you're going to see your brother Richard Alex alive again? And he said, no. He says we are a mining family. We've got mining in our veins and miners will survive, come what may.
(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
PENHAUL: Jonathan, as well, together with his father, Jose Vega, is 79 years old. He's been a wildcat miner all his life and Jonathan and his father Jose, after the collapse on the day of the collapse, both of them together with three friends went inside that mine and they said, we are not going to let Richard Alex die inside that mine. We are going to go inside and we are going to pull our brother out.
And they went right down several hundred meters into that mine shaft. They got to a point where rocks were falling down. It was a shower of rocks. Jonathan and Jose, his 79-year-old father, could go no further. They had to go back.
But at no point did they give up hope, that Richard Alex would come out alive. In fact, one point, Jose was trying to hatch some kind of a plan to go in through a sister mine and dynamite his way down to where Richard Alex was. That didn't happen.
But now, Richard Alex is back to the surface.
(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
PENHAUL: I asked Jonathan, what were your feelings as you saw your brother rise up through that Phoenix II capsule? And he said, I haven't got the words to tell you. He said, but I was calm. He said, because I'm a miner.
He's a miner like his brother. And he said, I could see that this was a job well done. I could see that my brother was going to come out. This job was an excellent job.
Well, there you have it. Jonathan, like his brother, a miner, like their father, 79-year-old Jose Vega, a miner, too. And it was the love of a brother and love of a father that drove Jonathan and his father into the mine on the day of the collapse, saying we're not going to wait for an elaborate rescue work. We're miners. We will survive.
They braved rock falls and were prepared to risk their own life to save Richard Alex. Well, it's got a happy ending. Richard Alex is now back to the surface and reunited with his family, John.
ROBERTS: And you can imagine the sense of relief, too, because even though this rescue effort has been meticulously planned, there's always a chance that something could go wrong and now, Richard Alex back on the surface.
Extraordinary coverage from our Karl Penhaul this morning with Richard Alex Vega's family -- Karl, thanks so much.
CHETRY: Yes, I just -- I had one quick question, Karl. As we've been watching all this unfold, you've been there for seven weeks. Do you see -- how is this town, how is this community ever going to go back to the way it was? Or will it not be able to?
PENHAUL: It will not. Having talked to a lot of families over these last seven weeks, I say, how are you going to feel when all this is over, when you no longer have to live in the desert, when you can go back to your homes and normal lives? And they said to me, after this, it's difficult to talk about normal lives. What we can certainly talk about is the before and the after.
This accident has split everybody's lives in two. Of course, it's split the miners' lives in two and split the families' lives in two, as well. They will always be our lives before the accident and our lives after the accident.
And you can see that these miners, a lot of them tough, working class men. Maybe not prone to sitting down or having too much time to sit down and think life through, but they've had that chance now and you can see this through some of the marriage proposals that have come up, some of the expressions of love that have come up. Even one of the miners has turned his hand to poetry since he's been down there, really had not much of an academic background at all.
So, these miners have found things inside of themselves that they never believed was there. Yes, they found resistance. They found a will to survive that they knew did exist and I believe they found a new love for their families, a new value on life. And certainly the miners' families up here have done the same and they say that, 33 families, many of them never knew one another before and now, those 33 families have become one family.
And I think, you know, amid all the bad, an accident waiting to happen, it was a tragedy that should not have happened, but in all the bad, good things have come out, too. And above all, 33 families that have shown us some real human values, to stand by the people that they love and to never give up.
ROBERTS: All right. Karl Penhaul there. And, you know, obviously, it's been taking its toll on Karl, as well. He's been up around the clock in the dry climate there in the Atacama Desert. But, Karl, I got to say, your coverage, your perspective on all of this has been nothing short of extraordinary. We thank you so much. We'll talk to you again in just a little while.
CHETRY: Thanks, Karl.
Well, after spending nearly 10 weeks underground, there are concerns about the toll of this ordeal has taken on the health of even the healthiest of the miners. Five that have been rescued so far have been transported to a local hospital. They had to -- they had to do that by helicopter. And more are going to be making their way there, as well.
Chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, joins us now from Pasadena, California, with more on the medical perspective.
I mean, we're seeing this outpouring of love, the joyous reunions. But in some of the more practical concerns, Sanjay, their health -- what are they going to be looking for as they examine these men?
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, it's worth stating again just how remarkable it is that these miners are coming up looking so good after so much time. I think that we are getting used to seeing the images of them coming up smiling and looking seemingly healthy.
But, you know, just from a medical standpoint, it's just worth pointing out again that is a remarkable thing that has been achieved here. You know, I know you were talking to some folks involved with Quecreek mining disaster earlier and after a few days only, how much of a toll it took on their bodies. Getting the miners adequate food, adequate nutrition, giving them the medicines that they needed, if they needed medicines -- all of that, and all the -- just the preparation for these moments now has just really been truly remarkable. And again, it's worth stating that, again, as people looking at those images.
You know, from here on out, at least in the initial period, there is a consistent concrete medical triage system. Whether you're healthy before all this, whether you've had some sort of a preexisting illness, there is a pattern to how health care professionals will sort of address these miners now, looking at the airway, looking at their breathing, looking at their circulation. You see them up walking around and then going back on to the gurney and getting that evaluation.
But there's all sorts of what may seem like relatively minor ailments that could turn to bigger problems down the road unless they are addressed early. One quick example, being underground for so long, these miners haven't been exposed to the same germs and viruses that we've been exposed to, that the people of Chile have been exposed to, to suddenly bombard them with all those potential infections, that could be problematic.
So, providing inoculations, vaccinations, for example, may be something that they maybe doing; giving I.V. fluids, you wanted to make sure that these miners had enough fluid in their bodies so that they didn't become faint, light headed, pass out during the rescue mission itself. But you didn't want too much fluid because that could make it difficult for them to breathe.
So, you know, again, you see sort of the outcome which is a terrific outcome. But from a medical standpoint, the planning for this sort of thing, making sure there was no problem during the rescue itself is just been phenomenal, to sort of see it unfolding. You know, we're having conversations with some of the folks down there and now, we get to see this sort of outcome which has been great for these miners.
ROBERTS: Just to let folks at home know what we're seeing, on the right-hand side of the screen, Sanjay, if we can go back to that, is the wheel turning there as the Phoenix capsule was lowered back down to the mine. And in just a couple of moments, we should probably see that entering the chamber so that miner number 11 can get on board and that will mark the one third of the way through point of this dramatic rescue.
CHETRY: Yes.
ROBERTS: But, you know, you talked about breathing problems here as a result of having I.V. fluids infused perhaps too quickly. Speak to Mario Gomez, who was second to last miner who was brought up, who suffers from silicosis, otherwise known as black lung disease.
What are the concerns about his health on the way up and what do you think the next few hours will hold for him?
GUPTA: Yes. You know, it's interesting because so many miners do have some form of silicosis when -- it's silica that gets into the lung, in conjunction with carbon, is actually known as black lung disease, as you know. It causes the scarring of the lungs, it makes it difficult for lungs to contract and expand as well. And as a result, you know, just simply getting enough air in is hard and someone -- you know, their oxygen levels at any given time, yours maybe 99 percent, 100 percent if we measure it right now. His would be probably lower. So, his reserve is what's in question more than anything else.
A couple of things -- when you saw the supplemental oxygen given to all of the miners that they came up, in his case he wore a more complete face mask so as not to get to any dust, any particles into his lungs, which could really push him over the edge. He has limited reserve, push him over the edge, and that can be problematic.
All of these miners getting what is known as their biometrics tested as they're coming up, so they really keep a close eye on all of that. But, you know, I think if there's a theme to the medical part of the rescue, it is that they want the leave no stone unturned here and so, they're taking every precaution possible.
CHETRY: Sanjay, a couple of other quick questions. One is, during some of the reading, we were talking about the things that they were sending down and as we've said, meticulous planning, medications and things like that. But also, they've been sending down cigarettes apparently. First, it was nicotine patches. But for the miners that smoked, 69 days, they want their cigarettes.
So, how is that, you know, all playing into this, as well, when there's already respiratory concerns down there with the air and the humidity?
GUPTA: Yes. I'm sure there were some significant discussions about that among the medical personnel, balancing that with the needs and wants of the miners.
You know, obviously, you know, the biggest concern about something like this is more the confined space of this particular area where they were and the impact of all of that extra second-hand smoke. But we actually talked to some folks down there and they said there seemed to be enough venting in that particular area that they decided that it would be OK to allow them to have a certain number of cigarettes per day.
But, you know, it's a worthwhile question, especially for people who have underlying lung problems like Mario as we were discussing. You know, and I think that was probably a risk and sort of reward sort of discussion that they had. You know, and I don't know how various people came down on that particular discussion.
But, in the end, you know, if you have sort of balance out what the venting of the secondhand smoke was with the benefit it gave the miners, that's the decision they made.
ROBERTS: Well, in many parts of Latin America, smoking is the national sport. So, I guess, when you're trapped underground, you can't deny them their cigarettes.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta for us this morning in Pasadena -- Doc, thanks so much.
As we take a look now, the Phoenix II capsule has arrived at the chamber -- 2,300 feet underground. Miner number 11, Jorge Galleguillos will be getting inside soon to make a trip to the surface.
Coming up in just a couple of moments, we're going to talk with Dr. J.D. Polk of NASA. He was the chief medical consultant on all of this. And we'll speak to him about the many issues that he helped the Chilean miners address -- when we come back.
It's 14 minutes after the hour.
ROBERTS: We continue our breaking news coverage this morning in the rescue of the 33 trapped miners in Copiapo, Chile in the San Jose mine. NASA officials have been advising the Chilean government since the accident occurred. They see the miners' ordeal is only just the beginning. Joining us live from the Johnson Space Center in Houston this morning to talk to J.D. Polk, he is the Chief of Space Medicine for NASA, he was part of a team that visited the collapsed mine last month and I guess you could call him the chief international medical consultant for the mine rescue. Doctor Polk, great to see you this morning. Give us a few words from the 30,000 foot --
DR. J.D. POLK, CHIEF OF SPACE MEDICINE, NASA: Great to be here.
ROBERTS: What the overall concerns were for these miners as they endured the last 69 days.
POLK: Well, unlike astronauts who actually get to prepare for their long duration missions in their confined space, who also have standards and medical checks before their odyssey, these miners were very unprepared for that. They had not planned on being trapped and that was probably the biggest difference. So these folks brought a lot of their chronic medical problems which you have been discussing this morning, with them into the mine and taking care of those things was one of the major feats that the Chilean health authorities had to encounter and had to deal with and they have done an outstanding job at that as you can tell.
CHETRY: Speaking a lot of outside help, international help, as well, to make it happen. We just want to let our viewers know what is happening right now. This is the capsule, these live pictures being broadcast by the Chilean government from the inside of the mine. We just saw the Phoenix capsule carrying miner number 11, George Galleguillos, 56 years old up through that 2,300-foot ride to the surface.
Dr. Polk, I want to ask you about him. Because he's 56 years old, and apparently has hypertension, high blood pressure and there were some concerns raised about his health because in one of his videos he said he was not feeling well. So, what are the concerns when you're dealing with high blood pressure in that enclosed capsule as he makes his way up for this 11 to 15-minute journey?
POLK: Well, that was one of the principal reasons why the Chilean health authorities decided to send medics into the mine ahead of time was to make sure that they could optimize the health of folks that had different medical risks such as hypertension before the ascent. So for this individual, probably less of a fluid load as Dr. Gupta had mentioned before. To make sure that his blood pressure stays up.
He may need less than the other miners and also to make sure his blood pressure is under control. Hypertension is one of the main cardiac risks. They want to make sure his cardiac status is good, he is not having any chest pain, that he is getting enough oxygen. He may need a little more supplemental oxygen. But they are taking care of those things and they are taking great care to make sure that they cover every detail medically.
ROBERTS: You know, Dr. Polk, it's really terrific to have you on because there's so many issues about keeping these miners' spirits and their physical stamina up, as well, for as long as they were down in the ground. As you mentioned, NASA does an extraordinary job of preparing astronauts for long-term confined missions. I think the average tour of duty is about 6 months on the International Space Station. What did you or what tips did you give the Chilean government in keeping their physical health up under ground as well as their mental spirits?
POLK: Well, there are a myriad of different recommendations that started in each phase of the operation. And that was one of our biggest recommendations was to split this operation because of its length into separate phases because each one has its own challenges from the physiological standpoint, from an engineering standpoint and from a psychological standpoint, as well.
So, splitting it up from the actual incident to what we call a survival phase where they were trying to get their nutrition back up and not having what we call a refeeding syndrome or a problem after they try to get back to normal nutrition. All the way to the rescue phase and then not to forget the convalescent phase or the reintegration back into society.
CHETRY: Yes, those were all big concerns. One of the things that you guys recommended was the alternating of night and light, light and dark periods in the mine to keep, I guess their internal clocks in sync also some questions about how their eyes would adjust. They're seen coming out of the mines wearing sunglasses. How did you figure that out and how did you work within the confines of that mine to make that happen?
POLK: Well, we had obviously looked at many different contingencies in space flight. For example, the Hubble Mission, we worked on multiple contingencies in case that mission had been stranded in space and needed to wait for the rescue space shuttle to occur. So many of these things that the miners were going through and many of the questions that the Chilean health authorities were looking at, we had already answered or simulated at NASA for different reasons. So bringing those lessons learned down to Chile was actually even surprising for us how many things translated from space flight down to ground.
ROBERTS: So, give us an idea of what did translate from space flight to being trapped in a mine.
POLK: Well, small things. Refeeding the miners was probably one of the bigger things actually. When you reefed someone that was starving, like they were, you can't just send down a lot of carbohydrate. Their insulin has been down regulated in their body. You want to make sure that you do not refeed them too quickly or with too much carbohydrate because you can lower what is called phosphate, which is one of the electrolytes in the body that can cause some profound problems. That's something that NASA had thought through and worked through if we had to refeed astronauts due to a contingency on orbit.
Also, the fluid load protocol that they had prior to coming up in the ascent module to make sure that the blood pressure stays up when they're standing essentially at attention in the capsule. That came directly from the shuttle program and the soy use program. Fluid loading protocol that we do for the astronauts to make sure their blood pressure stays up when they re-enter into Earth's gravity. CHETRY: Wow, those are amazing considerations that had to take place, as well. Some of the other things that they're really curious about, what people want to know when they were down there is the importance and some of the psychologists that we talked today have talked about the about the importance of having a structure. Almost a social structure, a leader, tasks. How does all of that -- so that, you know, things don't just disintegrate down there. How does that all happen?
POLK: Well, as with many things, if you have meaningful work and you have a structure, it keeps the cohesion of the group. Everyone works toward a common goal and there's less dysfunction with the group at that time. We have learned those lessons through multiple different explorations whether it was the northwest passage all the way through space exploration that keeping folks on task and keeping them with what we call fruitful work is very useful. Not only for the body but also for the mind.
ROBERTS: Because I guess, you know, when you look at comparisons to the space program, this has elements of a tour of duty on the International Space Station and dealing with long-term isolation but then at same time it would also have parallels to something like, let's say, Apollo 13, where you're in a confined space, you are in difficult circumstances, and you don't know if you're going to make it back.
POLK: Absolutely. And one of the disadvantages that the Chileans had was unlike space missions where we get to plan out just about every minute of every day and actually know when the landing is going to occur, and have preparation and simulation for all the things that are going to occur during a mission, they did not have that. And in fact, after about this first 17 days, they were on an unscripted odyssey at that point. No one had been down that deep that far for that long and so they were literally writing the book after that.
ROBERTS: Wow. Well Dr. J.D. Polk of NASA, it has been fascinating talking to you this morning because, you know, over this last six and a half weeks we have been hearing so much about this and it's great to talk to the guy who actually helped design some of the programs. Appreciate it.
CHETRY: Thanks Dr. Polk.
POLK: Thanks so much. Appreciate your time.
CHETRY: Must be amazing for him to actually see it happening so successfully from at least you know, from what we have seen so far about a third of the way through and everything has gone nearly flawlessly.
ROBERTS: If any organization knows about surviving in confined spaces under adverse circumstances, it is NASA. So a big piece of the puzzle provided from our folks in Houston this morning. Our continuing coverage of the miners' rescue. We'll be back right after this message. It is 25 minutes after the hour.
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CHETRY: Welcome back. Twenty-eight minutes past the hour. We're continuing to follow the breaking news out of Chile today. We are seeing some pictures right now. Dignitaries who have come to the scene of the rescue site to be able to be there and shake hands and cheer along with the rest of the family and rescuers that are there.
ROBERTS: Bolivian president Evo Morales alongside the Chilean president, Sebastian Pinera. Of course, one of the miners brought up earlier was Bolivian.
CHERTY: Only one from Bolivia, that was Carlos Mamoni, 34 years old. He was the only non-Chilean that was trapped and he told his family, I'm not going back down into the mine.
ROBERTS: I'm going back home --
CHETRY: Exactly. Others do not necessarily feel that way. A range of emotions as the psychologist told us that we would see in this. We're awaiting Jorge Galleguillos, 56 years old. He is on his way up right now. Could just be a matter of minutes before we see him come up to the surface. So, meanwhile, we are going to check in with Christine Romans and then we'll check back in with what is going on.
ROBERTS: She is here "Minding Your Business" this morning. Specifically, she is taking a look at some of the companies who were involved in the rescue.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: We have talked about NASA. You probably knew about U.P.S., the big American package company that, you know, 17 or 18 days after this whole disaster --
ROBERTS: They actually could ship to the mine?
ROMANS: They actually shipped them to the mine. They took them -- not the bottom of the mine. They can get it done. 48 hours they said that they -- that after they were contacted by the embassy, the consulate in Washington that they were turning around real quickly and getting supplies down there.
There's some other companies, too. They're quite proud of the affiliation and their engineering prowess that they've been able to use in what they're all calling a humanitarian effort, a company called Schramm, another one called Zephyr Technology. Schramm, of the eight rigs that were looking for the miners originally, four or five of those were Schramm rigs.
And they have these highly portable drilling rigs. The one on the left you see is actually that plan "b" drill rig. That's the drill rig that drilled the main rescue shaft. And then the other one there on the right is the one that reached the miners. That was the first with the five and a half inch diameter bore hold. They were literally poking holes trying to find the guys, and it was just utter elation when it drilled just like that did.
CHETRY: Some people have written in and asked why don't they drill these rescue shafts beforehand so that when it happens they could just un-tap it. But it's zigzagging and they don't really know where it is. You're right. That first -- after 17 days, a first got a note sent up saying 33 of us here alive.
ROMANS: And just the engineering technology being deployed there. Another company called Center Rock does the drill bits that punched those pilot holes to find the miner. And it manufactures this drill with a large canister with six hammers in it to take the original bore hole and pop it out -- pop is too easy. To grind it out, grind it out slowly over the days to make it something that can rescue the guys from.
ROBERTS: And here comes Jorge Galleguillos to the surface. His brother Carlos is there to greet him and say hello. Just take a moment to get him out. Continue, Christine.
ROMANS: He's probably wearing this belt around his chest, something that is from made by Zephyr and pretty high-technology, too. So they have this belt around the waist, usually for, for example, elite athletes or first responders in very, very tricky situations where the software is attached to it so you can monitor exactly what's happening.
There's like a tachometer, basically, for each of these where a doctor can watch exactly what's happening with them with this software that's being sued all of the way down to the bottom of that mine. So all of them have been monitored very, very closely and there's a bunch of companies involved in that, as well.
CHETRY: In this case, they're going to be probably looking at these vital signs closely because Jorge has hypertension, high blood pressure, and a concern was how he would do on that ride up. There we see him right now. Let's listen in for a second seeing him actually being taken out of the rescue chamber.
(APPLAUSE)
ROBERTS: Brother to brother embrace there. Wow.
CHETRY: His brother is one of 13, family of 13. Two children of his own mining for 30 years. The family is probably very relieved he is safely out of the mine, miner number 11.
ROBERTS: A remarkable story of survival down there that all 33 miners underground survived. And it's only by happenstance, too, that Jorge survived. He and another miner were driving a truck deep into the mine. Of course, these mines are huge and enormous labyrinth and you can drive vehicles down there.
They noticed a white butterfly that made that way underground and stopped to take a look at it. And as they stopped, the rock in front of them, the rock ceiling collapsed in front of them. So if they did not stop, they probably would have been caught up in the collapse.
CHETRY: So they --
ROBERTS: A butterfly flaps its wings in Chile, and two lives are saved.
(LAUGHTER)
CHETRY: It is true. I was reading that, as well. It made me think how amazing this all 33 who were under there survived.
ROBERTS: Yes.
CHETRY: In some cases, you have some parts of the mine that perhaps were closed off from others a section where people lucky enough to be. Those are the survivors. But in this case all 33 with myriad of health conditions for some of them, the ages ranging from 18 and 19 to 63, and everybody made it this far.
ROBERTS: It's pretty incredible.
And it's nine and a half hours into this rescue operation, they're now a third of the way through. And our special coverage this morning on CNN continues in just a moment. It's 36 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back. It's 38 minutes past the hour right now. And we are just finishing witness the 11th rescue at the mine in Chile outside of Copiapo. Five of miners have been moved offsite and taken to a local hospital.
And that's where Patrick Oppmann has been in the middle of it all. He is live at the Copiapo Regional Hospital. We just saw Jorge Galleguillos come up out of the ground, 56 years old. He was suffering from high pressure. Other than him and one of the other miners who they were worried about because of a lung condition, most of them seem to be in really good shape. What are they looking for doing the initial health checks?
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Looking for a number of things. You know, you were just talking about companies that have been helping out, U.S. companies, companies overseas. Add to the list, Oakleys. You see the telltale glasses they're wearing to protect their eyes from the sunlight. These men have not seen daylight in over two months. Doctors are concerned about their eyesight and how their eyes might be affected by the strong desert sun in the Chilean desert here.
And the Oakley sunglass company sent down well over 33 pairs of sunglasses last week. They were told the miners would be wearing them, and we've seen some of the miners wearing sunglasses to protect their eyes.
They'll be getting a full check-out here at the Copiapo regional hospital. They have an intensive care unit set up for these men. And there's just really no way to describe the hometown pride that Copiapo feels for these miners. Many of them live in this town. Certainly it's a closest town to the mine. And last night while we were broadcasting from the town plaza, we got the experience of watching another miner, another miner that worked at this mine, react to the news that Florencio Avalos, the first miner rescued, was above ground.
And Kiran, as you will see, it was just an amazing moment to share in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OPPMANN: And Kiran, you know, on August 5th when the men left, many from this area where I'm coming to you now, they left as miners going to work. It's a scene you see here every day. When they're returning here this morning, they're returning as something quite different. They're returning to their hometown as heroes.
ROBERTS: Patrick, obviously this day is given to elation, celebration, pride among the mining community. But in the days and weeks ahead, tough questions will be asked surrounding the issue of mine safety. We have heard from some families of miners that they didn't think the mine was safe and potentially there was going to be a collapse and then it happened.
So do you expect there's new suspicion of the mining industry there in Copiapo?
OPPMANN: Well, certainly, there will be mining changes and not in the industry not just in Copiapo but across Chile. The president said last night that mine, the mining company, San Jose mine will not be reopened until they can clean up their safety record.
That man celebrating, he's a miner and worked at San Jose and miners here said don't come and pack the business. We need to work. After that joyous moment, I said, the president's talking about shutting down the mine, how do you feel about that?
He said I've worked in that mine. It's a dangerous mine. If they can't keep us safe, it needs to be shut down. They have a name for them here in Chile, John. They call them kamikaze mines. If you go down in the mine, you may not come back. And that's one thing people here say needs to change.
CHETRY: That's amazing and has certainly garnered international attention. And as we've heard renewed focus on mine safety in the country, what it means for the livelihood of people who have been doing this their whole entire life is another big question to be discussed, for sure. Patrick Oppmann for us this morning, thanks.
ROBERTS: That is definitely an issue to be dealt with because these miners have trapped underground for 69 days. Some of them feel their experience will bankrupt them because they haven't been able to make payments on property they own. One fellow said his house was almost paid off and probably will be all right.
But there are others carrying a fairly substantial financial burden. And then there is the question of the whether or not there will be jobs in the weeks and months ahead if they shut down that mine. There's a number of jobs that probably will not come back. So some economic concerns ahead as well.
But for the moment, as we said today, given to celebration and elation as we see the family members just erupt in jubilation as their loved ones come back home after 69 days underground.
Continuing coverage of the miners' rescue in Copiapo, Chile at the San Jose mine coming up after the break. It's 43 minutes after the hour.
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ROBERTS: Live picture you're looking at this morning on the right-hand side of your screen; the Chilean President and the President of Bolivia, visiting with the fourth miner to come up from underground. Carlos Mamani, he is a Bolivian citizen and he's the guy who said, "I'm not going back at the mines here Chile. I'm going back home to Bolivia, I'm going to start a new life."
CHETRY: Right and he's still wearing the protective glasses, the sunglasses because of that difference of being in that artificial and dim light for nearly two and a half months and then coming up to sunlight and -- and normal lighting, tough on the eyes.
But meanwhile, 11 miners brought up safely; the drama, the sheer emotion of this rescue bringing tears to millions of people who've watched this around the world. Let's take a look.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
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CHETRY: There you go. That was the second miner rescued, Mario Sepulveda embracing his co-workers, proudly singing the Chilean national anthem with them. People dubbed him, "Super Mario" for his exuberance, he popped right out of the rescue capsule and it was just -- he did not look like somebody who had been -- you know suffering for 69 days whose you know life hung in the balance these rescuers trying to get to them.
ROBERTS: All of these miners have looked in remarkably good shape. Even one of miners who were suffering from a lung disease, brought on by his years in the mines looked pretty good. I -- I guess -- the last miner to come up was the one who probably looked the worst. We saw that he had a blood pressure monitor on his wrist.
Obviously, his -- his physical stature is in somewhat question and they to make sure that he got up ok. But we see that this capsule going up and down, up and down bringing these miners out. It's been moving at a fairly good clip as well; in on nine and a half hours they brought out 11 miners.
Let's get a closer look at that rescue case -- it's called the Phoenix -- that's lifting these men to the surface.
Our CNN senior Latin American affairs editor Rafael Romo has a mock-up of the pod. Walk us through it Rafael.
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: John and Kiran, I'm really glad you showed the pictures of rescued miner number 2, Mario Sepulveda who is being called "Super Mario" in Chile because he carried with him a bag full of rocks from the depths of the mine to give out as souvenirs once he got there. Because I really have no idea how he was able to fit that bag of rocks in the -- the rescue cage.
It's -- it's very tight. As you can see, from my shoulder to my shoulder there's a space of only 21 and a half inches. The height, the total height is 6'4". So there's not a lot of space to maneuver here and also you have to take into account the fact that you need to wear -- the miners are wearing a belt that is helping rescue -- the rescue team on the surface to monitor their vital signs, heartbeat, blood pressure and the like.
So once you add the communications equipment to -- and -- and that belt, there's really not a whole lot of space to maneuver. So a very tight space but, again, it was just incredible to see Mario Sepulveda come out of the cage with that bag full of rocks to celebrate with all the people in Chile -- Kiran and John.
CHETRY: Yes. It's just is amazing to see. And just the way that you're showing it right there, I mean, it is -- I mean, for -- for just an average-sized guy, it's a tight squeeze. As we know, some of them had to actually lose weight to fit into that capsule.
ROMO: It is, Kiran. And just -- just to give you an idea, I'm about 5'10". And I have a little space on top of me but really not a whole lot of space on the side and you also have to remember that the way they are being pulled up, I'm -- I'm standing perfectly straight right now.
But the way they are being pulled out is a little tilted at an angle. So not very comfortable and it's a bit of a bumpy ride on the case but then again, this is the instrument that is saving their lives.
ROBERTS: Hey, yes. I mean, a bumpy ride up 2,300 feet or spending the rest of your life underground.
CHETRY: Yes.
ROBERTS: I think, that's it -- it's not a hard choice.
CHETRY: Just think of it as the worst MRI experience you never have to go through.
ROBERTS: Yes, Rafael Romo for us this morning. Rafael, thanks so much.
CHETRY: So we're getting ready for miner number 12 to be pulled up to the surface.
We're going to take a quick break and we're going to be back in Chile with the latest on the progress this morning.
It's 49 minutes past the hour.
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CHETRY: Eight minutes until the top of the hour right now.
It's been a long four hours but an amazing exhilarating four hours as we've been watching these mine rescues in Chile.
ROBERTS: It's just kind of flown by as you watch miracle after miracle as these men are pulled up half a mile from underground after being underground for 69 days. It's just really quite spectacular.
CHETRY: Yes it -- it really is there's nothing else to quite describe it except almost perfect and the way that this has gone. I mean the meticulous planning and then to see the operation just go as flawlessly as it has, fingers crossed it will continue.
But the 11th miner pulled up was Jorge Galleguillos, he was the one who was 56 years old. There we see him coming up there were some concerns because of a high blood pressure and -- and -- and also his overall health because in one of the earlier videos he had talked about being unwell.
ROBERTS: Yes. And he's -- he's one of the only miners, he's the only miner that we've seen come up so far that has facial hair. The other miners had -- had asked for shampoo, razors and shoe polish. They wanted to make themselves nice and clean on the way up to greet family members.
And that's just really is, again, a testament to -- to -- their frame of mind and how strong they were through all of this that they -- they obviously -- they are anxious to get out but they want to make sure that they put best face forward as it were when they do come out.
CHETRY: Yes that was amazing. Also on the flip side, the wives/girlfriends, family members wanted to look good as well. They said, so many people were heading to Copiapo to get their hair done and to look great to see their loved one for the first time in two and a half months.
ROBERTS: And as we watch this all unfold on an international scale, people around the world are really just riveted to what's going on there in the little town of Copiapo.
You know, when it comes to Jorge Galleguillos, he has -- there's so many remarkable stories of how these survived. And his is particularly interesting.
Our Karl Penhaul walks us through that. Here he is.
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PENHAUL: Up here in the dry Atacama Desert, folklore mixes with superstition. And superstition blends with religion. And as the cold night draws in, miners' families huddle around and light a fire and they begin to telltales.
And the tale they're telling is about the miner and the white butterfly.
Part of that story is told here, in a letter sent by miner Jorge Galleguillos from the bowels of the earth. It was afternoon on August 5th Galleguillos and Franklin Lobos were driving a truck inside the mine.
Galleguillos' letter reads, "I had gone out to the workshop and as we were driving back down, a block of rock caved in just a few seconds after we drove past. Just ahead, I saw a white butterfly."
Galleguillos' brother, Eleodoro, also a miner can't explain just how a butterfly flew more than 500 meters deep into the mine. Like most miners here, he's a fervent Catholic and deeply superstitious. He believes the butterfly was protecting his elder brother's life.
ELEODORO GALLEGUILLOS, BROTHER OF JORGE GALLEGUILLOS (through translator): I don't know what that was. Maybe that butterfly was a little angel passing in front of them or a little God saying, hurry up, there's danger down there.
PENHAUL: The blocks came down. And the dust flew up. The last thing he saw during that cave-in was the white butterfly. After that, he said I can't see a hand in front of my face. I can't see a hand in front of my face.
Galleguillos and Lobos were blinded by the dust. But they survived.
Mining consultant, Miguel Fortt (ph) is not given to flights of fancy. He says white butterflies flutter around these purple flowers that blossom in the desert early in the morning. But they rarely fly deep into a mine shaft. He says the two miners slowed down to observe the butterfly and that saved them from driving into rockfalls triggered by the first cave-in.
MIGUEL FORTT, RESCUE COORDINATOR: People who are religious would call this a miracle. From a scientific perspective, the butterfly may have flown into the mine on air currents. You can draw your own conclusions but that butterfly saved lives.
PENHAUL: And huddled around the fire on a cold night, the way the families tell the tale, that white butterfly was those miners' tiny guardian angel.
Karl Penhaul, CNN, at the San Jose Mine in northern Chile.
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ROBERTS: That is a true life example of the butterfly effect.
CHETRY: It sure is. It sure is. That's what their family members believe so it's wonderful.
We're going to take a quick break. Our continuing coverage continues in a minute.
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ROBERTS: Just a couple of minutes before the top of the hour. That Phoenix rescue capsule, we can see by watching Chilean TV is making the way back out that chamber deep down underneath the earth bringing miner number 11 up to the surface.
CHETRY: I believe number 12.
ROBERTS: I'm sorry. Miner number 12 up to the surface -- he's on the way through so they're making great progress.
CHETRY: This is the Elvis lover, by the way, Edison Pena. And he's the one that sends -- he requested for music to be sent down in the mine. He led the group in sing-a-longs while he down there. So I guess, he was keeping up the spirits of his fellow miners.
ROBERTS: Yes. So in about 11 to 12 minutes' time we're going to see Edison emerge to be met as all the miners have so far by a loved one and there will be an emotional homecoming for him.
That's going to wrap it up for us. Thanks so much for joining us this morning for our special coverage on AMERICAN MORNING. And of course, we are going to continue watching this all day long on CNN because what we're seeing there in Chile is nothing short of remarkable.
CHETRY: Remarkable. Inspiring. This true-life drama unfolding right before our eyes, so we will continue with that.
Also just a programming note: AMERICAN MORNING tomorrow is going to be covering the debate that's going on in Delaware.
ROBERTS: That's right. You're on your way to Delaware tonight.
CHETRY: Yes. Grabbing a train right now. We're going to be talking the day after how the debate between Christine O'Donnell and Chris Coons, the Senate candidates in Delaware, has gone.
ROBERTS: All right. So we'll see you again bright and early tomorrow morning.
Meantime the news continues here on CNN with Kyra Phillips in the "CNN NEWSROOM." And your thoughts, Kyra, about what you've seen so far.
