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Grab image taken from a video released by the Mining Ministry showing rescuers testing a capsule before attempting the rescue of the 33 miners trapped at the San Jose mine near the city of Copiapo, 800 km north of Santiago on October 11, 2010. After a record two months trapped underground in a collapsed mine, the miners appear to be just days from a miraculous rescue. (AFP)
The lifting to freedom of 33 miners trapped in a Chilean mine is the most delicate part of their rescue, with risks of rock slides and stress for each miner confined in a small cage.
The lengthy process of raising each man up a narrow shaft will begin at around midnight Tuesday (0300 GMT Wednesday), according to Mines Minister Laurence Golborne.
Anxieties rose as the end of a two-month nightmare was in sight.
"There's always a risk transporting people in a vertical system," said chief engineer Andres Sougarret at a news conference.
Falling rocks or damage to the narrow cradle could occur, Sougarret said. "But we'll have the means to unblock them."
The men, 32 Chileans and one Bolivian, have been trapped underground since the San Jose mine gold and copper mine in northern Chile collapsed on August 5, blocking the exit.
Earlier Monday, after engineers had reinforced a new rescue shaft with steel tubing, the 53-centimeter (21-inch) wide rescue capsule was lowered down 610 meters (1,830 feet) for the first time in a successful dry run.
"The lining of the first meters of the shaft reduces the risk. The bare rock appears very hard, but it's important to test the cage," said Omar Gallardo, a mining engineer from the University of Santiago.
The cage has been nicknamed the Phoenix in reference to the "rebirth" the miners are expected to experience on returning above ground.
It is expected to travel the 622 meters in around 15 minutes, slightly slower than an old elevator, according to local press.
Each miner will be pulled up in the container barely wider than their shoulders, and it could take around an hour or more for them to reach the surface, meaning the whole operation could last up to two days.
If they encounter problems, they can detach the cage and slowly lower themselves back down, aided by wheels on its sides.
A medical team has given the miners exercises to simulate the physiological stress they may encounter during the operation.
Each miner will also wear a "bio-harness" designed for astronauts, which carries electrodes to follow their heart-rate, breathing, temperature and oxygen consumption.
During tests, the miners had perfect cardiac and respiratory reactions, said Jean Romagnoli, a sports doctor on the rescue team.
But it remained to be seen whether anyone would panic during the actual operation.
"It's possible, because they'll ascend in a vehicle moving against hard rock, in which they'll be jerked and feel condensation in 30-degree centigrade (86-degree farenheit) heat," said Health Minister Jaime Manalich.
The rescue team plans to keep each miner occupied by requesting regular data over a radio, which they will read off a small screen.
"That meets a double objective, to have information in real time and to keep the miner concentrated on a simple task so that the journey seems shorter and anxiety is lessened," Romagnoli said.
"It's a bit like when you play a DVD for children in the car, so that they stop asking 'Are we there yet?'"
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