One by One, Chilean Miners Make It to FreedomUpdated

Eleven of the 33 miners trapped half a mile under the Chilean desert for a record-breaking 69 days have emerged to fresh air, tearful hugs from their families and the nation's president and jubilation from around the world. The first miner to emerge was 31-year-old Florencio Avalos. His sobbing 7-year-old son, Bairon, threw his arms around him in what's likely to become an iconic image of celebrations after the miners' perseverance, which quickly became a national symbol for Chile and a global media obsession.
"I told Florencio that few times have I ever seen a son show so much love for his father," Chilean President Sebastian Pinera said, according to The Associated Press.
Wearing sunglasses to protect his eyes, Avalos was freed shortly after midnight, ascending in a 28-inch-wide escape capsule painted with Chile's red, white and blue colors, and named Phoenix for a mythical bird that rises from ashes. Horns blared across the Atacama desert in darkness as the capsule finally reached the manhole-sized opening, to cheers of "Chi! Chi! Chi! Le! Le! Le!" Avalos climbed out and hugged his two sons and wife, then Pinera, and gave a thumbs-up before boarding an ambulance for medical checks.
The de facto deputy chief of the miners, Avalos was chosen to be rescued first because he's in the best health and able to troubleshoot glitches along the harrowing pathway up. There appeared to be none. He was followed an hour later by fellow miner Mario Sepulveda, who emerged with his physical strength -- and sense of humor -- intact. He jumped up and down, pumped his arms and led a crowd of onlookers in a chant for Chile. Then while being hauled away on a stretcher, he asked his wife "How's the dog?" and handed out rocks as joke souvenirs to his rescuers.
The Chilean newspaper Las Ultimas Noticias splashed his picture on its front page under the headline "Super Mario."
Speaking to reporters, he turned serious: "I've been near God but I've also been near the devil," Sepulveda said, according to The Daily Telegraph. "They fought but God won."