Nine Peruvian miners rescued after week

Lima, Peru (AHN) – Nearly a week after being trapped in the Cabeza de Negro copper mine in southern Peru, rescue forces on Wednesday saved nine Peruvian miners.

President Ollanta Humala met the survivors on Wednesday morning immediately after they left the mine. They emerged wearing dark glasses to protect their eyes from daylight.

The miners, covered with blankets, came out one by one. One of them was wearing an oxygen mask and had a little difficulty walking. The rest are said to be in good condition.

“We told each other jokes to keep up our hopes and ran from one place to another to keep warm,” one of the rescued miners, Edwin Bellido Sarmiento, told broadcaster Panamericana.

“There was a point when we thought we wouldn’t get out,” another miner, Javier Tapia Lopez, said.

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