SAN JOSE MINE, Chile -- Florencio Avalos, the first of 33
miners to be rescued, has surfaced after 69 days underground.
He stepped out of a rescue capsule amid sobs from his young son
and received a bracing bear hug from Chilean President Sebastian
Pinera.
Avalos smiled widely as he hugged rescuers, then Pinera, as his
wife, two sons and father looked on. His 7-year-old son Bairo
sobbed, as did Chile's first lady, Cecilia Morel. Then Avalos was
escorted into a medical triage center for the first of a battery of
tests.
