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Rescue operation completed in just over 24 hours – half the expected time

Mine rescue specialist Manuel Gonzalez the last man out at 4.33am

With remarkable speed – and flawless execution – miner after miner climbed into a cramped cage deep beneath the Chilean earth, was hoisted through 2,000 feet of rock and saw precious sunlight after the longest underground entrapment in history.

By 1.55am BST all 33 had been pulled to freedom, as the operation was completed in half the expected time.

They were closely followed by the rescue workers who had taken the capsule – nicknamed Phoenix – into the mine to oversee the evacuation.