and medical expertise from around the world. [ applause ] down below it might have turned into lord of the flies chaos and instead became the 33-man democracy with miners organizing, choosing leaders, deciding on the honor of who would be the last to leave. while up above the race to save them was on and so was the countdown to rescue. in the hour ahead we ll take you inside that race, moment by moment. the challenges and setbacks. how they were overcome and the mechanical and human ballet that made it all possible, all the elements that led first to images of miners safe underground and then ultimately to the incredible sight of those men emerging one by one from weeks of darkness. we re going to start at the beginning with tom foreman. reporter: august 5th, 2:00 in the afternoon. 2,300 feet underground, a shaft collapses in the san jose copper and gold mine. 33 miners are somewhere behind the rubble. their condition unknown. the chilean president promises every effort to
at 63, mario gomez, the oldest was the first freed in the new dawn. he kissed his wife and prayed. so did others. esteban rojas trapped with two cousins, asked his wife to renew their wedding vows while below, she said yes. edison pena led sing-alongs of elvis songs underground. ariel ticona s wife had a baby while he was trapped below. i hope this new life ahead of you is happy, the chilean president told him.
the long night ended for the youngest miner, jimmy sanchez, 19, for the only foreigner, boliviay carlos mamani. at 63, mario gomez, the oldest was the first freed in the new dawn. he kissed his wife and prayed. so did others. esteban rojas trapped with two cousins, ask his wife to renew their wedding vows while below, she said yes.
organizing, choosing leaders, deciding on the honor of who would be the last to leave. up above, the race to save them was on and so was the countdown to rescue. in the hour ahead, we re going to take you inside that race, moment by moment, challenges and setbacks, how they were overcome, the mechanical and human ballet that made it all possible. all the elements that led first to miners safe underground and the incredible sight of those men emerging one by one from weeks of darkness. we re going to start at the beginning with tom foreman. reporter: august 5, 2:00 in the afternoon, 2,300 feet underground, a shaft collapses in the san jose copper and gold mine. 33 miners are somewhere behind the rubble, their condition unknown. the chilean president promises every effort to rescue them but knew collapses complicate the formidable task. august 12, the miners families have set up camp on the surface to keep watch on the drilling. a week has passed and an official says there i
their tomb. they were alive 13 days before the rescuers reached them. down below what might have turned into lord of the flies chaos, instead became a 33-man democracy, with miners organizering, choosing leaders, and voting on who would be the last to leave. in the hour ahead, we re going to take you inside that race, moment by moment, challenges and set backs, how they were overcome, the mechanical and human efforts that were possible. the incredible sight of those men emerging one by one from weeks of darkness. we re going to start at the beginning with tom foreman. reporter: august 5, 2:00 in the afternoon, 2,200 feet under ground, a shaft collapses in the san jose copper and gold mine. 33 miners are somewhere behind the rubble, their condition unknown. chilean president promises every effort to rescue them. but there are complications. august 12, the miners families have set up camp on the surface to keep watch on the drilling. hours pass and officials say there s litt