Rescue of Chilean miners: a year later, euphoria gave way to despair. A spoonful of tuna a day: how Chilean miners survived underground

• Mario Sepulveda, one of the miners, whose image was embodied on the screen by Antonio Banderas, met the actor at the very beginning of filming. Soon Sepulveda became the leader of a group of extras employed in the film.
• The music for the film was written by James Horner, who did not live to see the August premiere for two months. 33 (2015) was the last film for which he composed music. Back in 2015, Antoine Fuqua's drama Lefty was released with a theme song written by James Horner.
• Due to the lack of work in their profession, the rescued miners joined the technical staff of the film crew, which told about the accident at the San José mine near Copiapo on August 5, 2010.
• Juliette Binoche was replaced by Jennifer Lopez as Maria Segovia.
• The film's director, Patricia Riggen, insisted that the actors speak English, as well as Spanish with a Chilean accent. For some actors, this proved to be a difficult task.
• Mario Casas admitted in an interview that he cried after watching a documentary about these events.
• On February 7, 2014, four iPods and two Sony Handycams were stolen from the set. Fortunately, these cameras were not used for filming, so the footage was not lost.
• To add drama to the narrative, the storyline of the film includes the stories of relatives of some of the miners for example, the daughter of Mario Sepulver, played by Antonio Banderas, and the pregnant wife of Alex Vega, played by Cote de Pablo.
• The trailer for the film, released in the United States, features "Say Something" from the duo's debut album A Great Big World (2013). The trailer, which was released in Chile, features folk singer Joan Baez's 1974 song "Gracias a la vida", or "Thanks to Life".
• The history of Chilean miners is mentioned in the television series "Handsome" (2004-2011), the main character of which, actor Vincent Chase, at one time rushed about with the idea of ​​filming a book by Hector Tobar.
• Chilean President Sebastian Piñera hosted a reception for the film's creative team at the government palace in Santiago.
• Preparing for filming, the Spanish actor Mario Casas missed the ceremony of the solemn presentation of the national film award of Spain.
• The film shows the age difference between President Sebastian Piñera, played by Bob Gunton, who is just over 70 years old, and Minister Laurence Golborne, played by Rodrigo Santoro, who looks to be 40 years old. In reality, Piñera was 60 years old in 2010, and Golborn 49.
• Actress Cote de Pablo was born in Santiago, Chile.
• Mexican actor Marco Antonio Treviño, who played the role of Jose Henriquez, said in an interview: “Filming in the mine was incredibly difficult. Dirt, feeling like we were written off, and working 12 hours a day.
• President Piñera, played by Bob Gunton, is portrayed as a cold and calculating politician who is only interested in his own reputation and that of his administration. When journalists asked the real president at the premiere in Santiago what he thought of his image in the film, Sebastian Piñera evaded a direct answer. "I'd better go talk to Juliette Binoche," he said.
• It was officially announced that "33" (2015) will be the first film, the authors of which are partially reimbursed by the Colombian authorities for filming costs. The amount of payments will consist of 40% of all money spent on production and installation, and 20% of other expenses incurred in the territory of this country (hotel accommodation, food, transportation).
• In 1993, Bille August's film The House of Spirits was released, in which Antonio Banderas played. The film was based on the bestseller of the same name by Isabelle Allende. It was her first novel, published in 1982. Its action also takes place in Chile.
• During an interview with Washington radio station Hot 99.5 in June 2013, Jennifer Lopez received a call on her mobile from her agent, saying that she was approved for a role in the film 33. The actress declined to discuss this in an interview. She only said that the film "is of no interest."
• Jennifer Lopez agreed to participate in the filming, but soon left the project due to filming in the American Idol program on the FOX channel.
• Attention! The following list of facts about the film contains spoilers. Be careful.
• The film shows that the President of Chile is mainly overseeing the progress of the rescue work from his palace, 800 kilometers from the scene of the tragedy. At the same time, it is the President who shows the reporters the note from the miners, and this happens almost immediately after it was found attached to the drill. This could be attributed to the laws of the genre, but the authors of the film did not sin against the truth. The president actually read the note from the miners to the journalists. He was warned that the drill could break through the roof of the shelter in which the miners were, he flew to Copiapo, and the note was found while he was on the way.
• Chilean actress Paulina Garcia plays President Piñera's aide in the film, who opposes Mines Minister Lawrence Golborne's attempts to organize a rescue operation. This is a fictional character that just makes the plot more dramatic. Nevertheless, many among Chilean politicians and those close to the president shared the opinion that the rescue efforts were pointless.
• The film features Anderson Cooper, an American journalist, writer, and television host, in a cameo role as a CNN news anchor. Subsequently, Cooper will invite the Chilean miners to the shooting of the program "Heroes".
• The film shows that Alex Vega is the first to get to the surface and rushes to his wife and newborn daughter. In reality, Vega was the tenth miner to have climbed out of the mine.
• In the last scene of the film, a character named Franklin Lobos is missing.
• In the film, the escape pod is shown to sink empty into the ground. The miners enter it one by one, and the last one to the surface is Luis "don Luco" Ursua. In reality, it wasn't quite like that. When the capsule descended into the shaft for the first time, one of the rescuers named Manuel Gonzalez was in it. Gonzalez risked his life, because it was impossible to say with certainty whether the capsule worked or not. It was Gonzalez who was the last to be raised from the mine. Yes, Ursua was the last miner to surface, but there was still Gonzalez below. He helped Ursua into the capsule, and then waited for him to be lifted to the surface and the capsule lowered after him. Thus, it was Gonzalez who became the only person who spent some time at depth all alone and who climbed into the capsule without outside help.

(Total 47 photos)

1. Chilean miner Osman Araya (right) hugs his wife Angelica after being brought to the surface by a capsule on October 13 after being locked up in a San Jose mine for 10 weeks. Araya became the sixth miner rescued from the trap. (HUGO INFANTE/AFP/Getty Images)

2. Chilean Minister of Mines Lawrence Golborn (center) answers journalists' questions at a press conference near the San Jose mine. On Tuesday, the entire country began the countdown to the start of an operation to rescue 33 miners. (RODRIGO ARANGUA/AFP/Getty Images)

3. A police officer patrols the area around the camp of relatives of 33 miners. (AP Photo/Hugo Infante, Chilean government)

4. Daniel Marin holds the national flag, which he already used during the earthquake, at the San Jose mine on October 12. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

5. The seven-year-old son of the Chilean miner Florencio Avalos Byron shows his drawing of rescuing his father while he is being examined by doctors, October 13. (ARIEL MARINKOVIC/AFP/Getty Images)

Picture taken from a video showing rescuers testing the capsule before the first attempt to rescue the miners on October 11th. (AFP/Getty Images)

7. The wife of the miner Mario Gomez Lilianette Ramirez combs her hair, preparing for the start of the rescue operation, October 12. (REUTERS/Luis Hidalgo)

8. Reporters remove the operation to rescue 33 miners. (REUTERS/David Mercado)

9. General view of the site of the rescue operation at the San Jose mine. (REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado)

10. Rescuer Manuel Gonzalez climbs into the Phoenix capsule at the beginning of the operation to rescue the miners. (RODRIGO ARANGUA/AFP/Getty Images)

11. Chilean President Sebastian Piñera (third from right) looks at the trial run of an empty capsule into the hole leading to the San Jose mine. (AP Photo/Hugo Infante, Chilean government)

12. The machinist controls the drum on the Phoenix capsule, which pulls out a second miner named Sepulveda. (ARIEL MARINKOVIC/AFP/Getty Images)

13. Photo from a camera installed on the capsule, with which 33 miners will be lifted to the surface, during testing of the capsule. (AP Photo/Government of Chile)

14. Miners and representatives of the Chilean authorities are looking into the hole where the rescue capsule descends, at the San Jose mine. (Hugo Infante/Chilean Government via Getty Images)

15. Relatives of miners and journalists watch the rescue of the first of 33 miners - Florencio Avalos. (REUTERS/Luis Hidalgo)

16. Chileans watch the broadcast of the rescue of miners on the big screen in the public square in Copiapo. (REUTERS/Mariana Bazo)

17. The capsule with the first miner appears on the surface on October 13th. (AP Photo/Roberto Candia)

18. Chilean President Sebastian Piñera and Minister of Mines Lawrence Golborn stand with relatives of Florencio Avalos in anticipation of his emergence from the capsule. (Hugo Infante/Chilean Government via Getty Images)

19. Chilean President Sebastian Piñera hugs miner Mario Sepulveda (left), who was brought to the surface by the capsule on October 13 after 10 weeks of captivity underground. Sepulveda became the second miner to be rescued from underground. (Jose Manuel de la Maza/AFP/Getty Images)

20. Roxana Gomez - the daughter of rescued miner Mario Gomez - cries, watching the broadcast of her father's rescue, in a camp for relatives of miners near the San Jose mine. Gomez was the ninth of 33 miners rescued from the San Jose mine after almost two months of captivity. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

21. Father welcomes Chilean miner Jimmy Sanchez (center left), who has just been brought to the surface in a capsule. (MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP/Getty Images)

22. People celebrate the rescue of the first miner Florencio Avalos in Copiapo on October 13. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)

23. The second rescued miner 39-year-old Mario Sepulveda leaves the capsule at the San Jose mine. (Hugo Infante/Chilean Government via Getty Images)

24. Miner Osman Araya appears on the surface in a capsule. (AP Photo/Hugo Infante, Chilean government)

25. Miner Jose Oyeda holds the Chilean flag, leaving the rescue capsule. (AP Photo/Hugo Infante, Chilean government)

26. Relatives and friends of the rescued miner Mario Gomez rejoice watching the broadcast of his rescue in the camp near the San Jose mine. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

27. 31-year-old Alex Vega looks at the sky, leaving the escape pod. He became the tenth miner rescued. (Hugo Infante/Chilean Government via Getty Images)

28. Chilean miner Florencio Avalos is in the hospital to check his condition. Avalos was the first miner to be rescued. (ARIEL MARINKOVIC/AFP/Getty Images)

29. Ninth rescued miner Mario Gomez is the oldest of all 33 miners trapped. He is 63 years old. (HUGO INFANTE/AFP/Getty Images)

30. Miner Mario Gomez prays a few seconds after he was pulled out of the ground in a mine in San Jose. (HUGO INFANTE/AFP/Getty Images)

31. Alex Vega, 31, holds a Bible while being wheeled to a nearby field hospital. Vega became the tenth miner rescued. (Hugo Infante/Chilean Government via Getty Images)

32. Alex Vega (left) hugs his wife after he was pulled out of the San Jose mine, where he stayed with 32 other miners for more than two months. (AP Photo/Hugo Infante, Chilean government)

33. A monitor displaying vital signs of the body, which is connected to special high-tech equipment attached to the chest of miner Osman Araya. (AP Photo/Hugo Infante, Chilean government)

34. Miner José Ojeda, left, inside a Chilean Air Force helicopter upon arrival at a military airfield near a hospital in Copiapo. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)

Bolivian miner Carlos Mamani is brought to the Copiapo hospital for a full medical examination. (REUTERS/Mariana Bazo)

A passenger reads a newspaper with a headline about saving Chilean miners. The picture was taken at a tube station in central London on Wednesday 13 October 2010. (AP Photo/Sang Tan)

Relatives of miner Dario Segovia rejoice as they watch the rescue operation broadcast on TV. The picture was taken at a camp near the San Jose mine on Wednesday October 13, 2010. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko) Chilean miner Yonni Barrios kisses his girlfriend after he was lifted to the surface. (JUAN MABROMATA/AFP/Getty Images) Miner Franklin Lobos, a former professional football player, holds a soccer ball signed by his family and friends as he is carried on a stretcher to a field hospital. Franklin Lobos became the 27th miner to be pulled from the rubble of the San Jose mine in Copiapo on October 13. (REUTERS/Hugo Infante-Government of Chile)

Locals in the square from Copiapo cheer as they watch the rescue of the last miners from the San José mine being broadcast on the big screen. (REUTERS/Mariana Bazo)

Family members approach the capsule containing miner Richard Villaroel, the 28th miner, who was brought to the surface from the rubble. (AP Photo/Hugo Infante, Chilean government)

Chilean miner Richard Villaroel hugs family members. (AFP PHOTO/GOVERNMENT OF CHILE/Hugo Infante)

54-year-old shift supervisor Luis Urzua, the last miner to surface, next to Chile's President Sebastian Piñera. President Piñera said the country has changed irrevocably after the incredible rescue of 33 miners who spent 69 days underground. He stated that Chile is now "more united and stronger than ever." (AP Photo/Roberto Candia)

More than a month ago, on August 5, the roofs of the San José gold and copper mine, near Copiapo, Chile, collapsed and 33 miners were trapped at a depth of 700 meters. They did not immediately learn about the fate of the miners - only after 17 days the rescuers reached their location, finding that they were all alive and well. Rescue work began immediately, but even with the rescue operation in full swing, it will take 2-3 months to release the miners. Until then, 33 men will have to endure high temperatures and humidity in an isolated space. We managed to establish video communication with the miners, many relatives set up camp right at the mine for a while, and water, food and notes are being let down to the workers through several narrow passages. The miners are even going to lower down the fluorescent lamps with timers, simulating day and night, so that they do not go astray. They plan to pull the miners to the surface through a narrow opening, so that in order to safely get out, the miner's waist should be no more than 90 cm.

(Total 42 photos)

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1. Relatives wait at a collapsed mine where 33 workers are trapped in Copiapo August 14. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

2. Rescuers gathered at the San Jose mine, where 33 miners have been staying for more than a month. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

3. The entrance to the mine for the extraction of copper and gold near the town of Copiapo in the Atacama Desert, 800 km north of Santiago, August 6. (STR/AFP/Getty Images)

4. Miner Daniel Espinoza waits at a collapsed mine to help 33 comrades trapped below. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

5. Relatives at the mine in Copiapo on August 6. A month ago, rescuers failed to reach the miners, who were trapped after the collapse of the mine vaults. She hoped that the miners managed to take refuge in a place where there is oxygen and water. (REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado)

6. Relatives of miners support each other in every sense of the word. (MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP/Getty Images)

8. Miners carry a statue of St. Lorenzo - the patron saint of miners - before the service at the mine in Copiapo on August 10. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

9. Chilean workers began drilling at the San Esteban mine, trying to reach 33 miners, 12 days after the disaster. (ARIEL MARINKOVIC/AFP/Getty Images)

10. Miners' relatives pray and light candles on an altar near the San Esteban mine on August 17. (ARIEL MARINKOVIC/AFP/Getty Images)

11. Relatives of miners wait for news after learning that a probe has been lowered to the place where the miners may be, on August 22. A drill probe was lowered into the mine to determine if the 33 miners were alive, but there was no news of their condition at the time. (HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP/Getty Images)

Chile Mines Minister Lawrence Golborne (left) smiles in this clip from a 24 Horas video after learning that a miner (right) heard sounds coming from an underground area where 33 miners may be on August 22. The text at the bottom reads: “The moment the drill reached 688 meters. The miner reports that he hears knocking. (AP Photo)

13. Chilean President Sebastian Pinera shows a note: "We are fine, we are in the shelter, we are 33." The miners were alive, and contact was made with them for the first time in 17 days after the accident at the San Jose mine. (HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP/Getty Images)

14. Relatives cry with joy when they learn that all 33 miners are alive. (REUTERS/Hector Retamal)

15. Chileans celebrate on the streets of Santiago after learning that all 33 miners are alive, August 22. (ARIEL MARINKOVIC/AFP/Getty Images)

16. Frame from the video of the Chilean national TV channel, which shows the face of one of the 33 miners Florencio Antonio Avalos Silva, August 22, 17 days after the collapse of the roof. (TVN/AFP/Getty Images)

17. Relatives of the miners are happy to know that they are alive. (AP Photo/ Roberto Candia)

18. A car drives along the main road to the San Jose mine near Copiapo on August 23. Eighteen days after the accident, rescuers sent provisions to the miners through a narrow hole, and now they have to do hard work to rescue the miners, which can take more than a month. (REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado)

19. Carlos Araya places an image of St. Expedito next to the Chilean flag with the name of a relative - one of the 33 miners, on August 23. (AP Photo/ Roberto Candia)

20. Rescuers prepare to lower the camera built into the nose of the drill into the mine on August 25. Miners complain that they have to endure "hellish" conditions, which makes rescuers work even faster, but salvation is still very, very far away. (ARIEL MARINKOVIC/AFP/Getty Images)

21. Relatives show each other a video of the miners, recorded from a camera in the probe, August 26. (HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP/Getty Images)

22. Candles are lit behind a religious statue in front of which miners' relatives pray. (REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado)

23. Karola Narvaez, wife of Paul Bustos, one of the 33 miners, reads a letter that her husband passed to her through a narrow hole in the mine. Narvaez and her husband survived a powerful earthquake. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

24. Marion, the granddaughter of trapped miner Mario Gomez, writes a letter to her grandfather on August 25. (ARIEL MARINKOVIC/AFP/Getty Images)

25. Relatives of trapped miners Renan and Florencio Avalo raise a torn Chilean flag on a hill overlooking a camp set up by relatives of miners at the mine, August 28. The flag has become a symbol of moral fortitude in Chile after a photo was taken of a Chilean earthquake survivor on Feb. 27 pulling the flag out of the wreckage. (AP Photo/Roberto Candia)

26. A cot with provisions, clothes, toilet articles and games to be sent underground to the miners. (REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado)

27. Workers stand at a narrow pipe, which is the only connection with the miners, August 29. Miners will have to help rescuers from the inside, removing stones that will fall from drilling. (AP Photo/Roberto Candia)

28. Relatives of miners stand among the Chilean flags at the mine on August 29. (AP Photo/Roberto Candia)

29. Photos of all 33 miners trapped after the accident at the San Jose mine. (AFP/Getty Images)

30. A man stands on a hill not far from the camp set up by relatives of the miners on August 30. (AP Photo/ Roberto Candia)

31. A worker checks a medical ventilator for miners. Rescuers are trying to find a way to speed up the rescue work. (REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado)

32. Food - rice, meatballs, cheese and bread - for the miners. Deprived of sunlight, fresh air, and companionship for 27 days, doctors say miners are also deprived of two other pleasures: alcohol and cigarettes. (REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado)35. Relatives of the miners set up camp near the San Jose mine. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia, Pool)

36. Workers operate the Xtrata 950 drilling tool. With its help, it is supposed to drill a well, lower a rescue capsule through it and raise the miners one by one to the surface. Also, high-frequency vibrators and other equipment were brought to the site for work. (REUTERS/Martin Mejia/Pool)

37. Relatives of Claudio Yanes communicate with him via video link on September 4. (Chilean Ministry of Mining/AFP/Getty Images)

40. The work of the T-130 boring tool, which is called "Plan B", is part of the operation to rescue 33 miners in Copiapo on September 6. Rescuers have started two approaches - "Plan A" and "Plan B", while a faster route - "Plan C" - is due to start on September 18. The latter can reduce the time to rescue the miners to two months. (ARIEL MARINKOVIC/AFP/Getty Images)

41. The video shows how the miners watch the broadcast of a friendly football match between the national teams of Chile and Ukraine. (REUTERS/Chilean Government)

42. Maria Segovia - the sister of one of the miners Dario Segovia - is watching the same Chile-Ukraine match on the other side of the mine - in the camp of relatives. (REUTERS/Luis Hidalgo)

Chile is celebrating the completion of an operation to rescue miners who spent more than two months at a depth of 700 meters. All 33 miners were brought to the surface alive and well.

The rescue operation lasted 22 hours and 37 minutes.

Six rescuers descended underground. They put the miners one by one in a predetermined order in a special capsule that lifted the miners to the surface. All six rescuers also successfully climbed out of the mine, reports the Latin American Herald Tribune. Chile's Minister of Mines Lawrence Golborn has already said that the costs of rescuing the miners cost more than $22 million.

The last of the miners, the media write, was the shift supervisor, 54-year-old Luis Ursua, who rose to the surface. He entered the capsule only when all his subordinates were rescued.

During those 69 days that the miners spent underground, Ursua did a huge organizational job. It was he who had to distribute supplies to three dozen people before food and water were lowered into the mine.

The collapse of the rock at the San Jose gold mine occurred on August 5. For 17 days after the accident, nothing was known about the fate of the miners. All these days, the miners ate mainly canned tuna. Ursua also determined the daily routine of the miners: they were awake for 12 hours, then went to bed. For the captives, writes the Latin American Herald Tribune, the decision "gave a sense of normalcy."

“Mr. Ursua, your shift is over,” the president of the country said to the risen miner.

He called the shift supervisor "a vital person." “Without you, salvation would not have been possible,” the president admitted. “I handed over my shift and I hope this never happens again. I am proud of the rescuers, miners, all the people living in this country. I am proud of Chile,” Ursua replied.

Before Ursua, 47-year-old José Ojeda came out of the mine. It was he who wrote the note “We are fine, we are 33” with a red pencil, which helped the rescuers find the immured miners. On the 17th day, there was a knock on the drill bit, which the rescuers heard, then they found a note attached to the drill. Ojeda, who came to the surface, waved the Chilean flag in front of the cameras and kissed his daughter with tears.

Now Chileans walk around the country in T-shirts with the inscription “We are fine, we are 33”.

The rescue operation was broadcast online by both Chilean and the world's leading TV channels. Even on Wednesday, when it became clear that the operation was going well, the streets of the cities were filled with music, motorists began to honk. People leaned out of the windows of cars, waving flags. Many Chileans put on national costumes and wide-brimmed hats, they sang and danced. In the city of Copiapo, where the families of miners mainly lived, there are festivities. The city is decorated with flags and posters. Wednesday was declared a day off, classes in city schools were canceled.

One of the most difficult rescue operations in the world has caused excitement not only in Chile. The President of the United States has already said that she "inspired the world." The operation can be called international - Chilean, American and even European rescuers participated in it.

The rescued miners are still in the hospital. The miners look better than expected, writes , many of them rose to the surface combed and clean-shaven.

Some of the gold miners will be able to leave hospitals and return home as early as Thursday. But the majority of those rescued, doctors admit, still need medical help: many miners have been diagnosed with pneumonia and lung diseases, bad teeth, exhaustion, someone has even been diagnosed with diabetes. Doctors also note that some of the miners are in deep depression, they will need serious help from psychologists.

Whether all miners will return to work after rehabilitation is still unknown.

The Chilean media are already writing that the rescued miners, who received about $700 a month before the accident at the mine, can now earn from $5,000 to $50,000 for one interview with leading media.

A few weeks ago, the miners, while still underground, signed an agreement in absentia to create an association with exclusive rights to disclose information about the collapse of the mine. But experts say that it will have legal force if all the miners now personally express such a desire and once again certify the document.

Miners' families have already received checks from many individuals. For example, the Chilean businessman Leonardo Farkas allocated $10,000 to each family. The relatives of the immured miners are demanding $1 million compensation for each miner through the court.