Chile's 33 trapped miners are set to travel nearly half a mile to the surface in a shaft just wider than a man's shoulders tonight, as their two month ordeal after a cave-in draws to an end.
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Nervous anticipation grew among the miners' relatives and friends as the mayor of nearby Copiapo said the rescue would begin at 8pm (12am Irish time), hours ahead of schedule.
As well as family and relatives, an estimated 1,700 media personnel have travelled to the remote location in the north of the country to witness the operation.
Each of the men is to be slowly winched up from the tunnel they took refuge in after part of the mine collapsed on 5 August.
Florencio Avalos, a 31-year-old athletic father of two, was chosen by Chilean officials to be the first miner brought to the surface.
He will be followed by Mario Sepulveda, 39, an electrical specialist, and then by Carlos Mamani, 23, the only Bolivian in the group of the 33 trapped miners.
Mr Avalos's family said they were overjoyed that their relative would be the first to exit the mine, but stressed Florencio would have to leave behind his brother, Renan Avalos, among the other trapped miners to be winched up later.
It will take around 15 to 20 minutes for the metal capsule enclosing each miner to arrive at the surface from a depth of over 620m, and around an hour for it to complete a round trip to pick up the next man.
Yesterday, rescuers successfully tested a capsule, dubbed ‘Phoenix’ after the mythical bird that rose from the ashes, after reinforcing part of the narrow escape shaft with metal casing to prevent rocks falling and blocking the exit.
Engineers said the final stage of the rescue still had its risks but that the capsule was handling well in the shaft, and they expected a smooth extraction.
The men have set a world record for the length of time workers have survived underground after a mining accident, and have been doing exercises to keep their weight down for their ascent.
Once the evacuations start, it will take 48 hours to extract the men.
Four rescuers will be lowered to help the miners prepare to return to the surface.
The miners will have their eyes closed and will immediately be given dark glasses to avoid damaging their eyesight after spending so long in a dimly-lit tunnel. They will then be under observation at a nearby hospital for two days.
President Sebastian Pinera, who ordered a revamp of mine safety regulations in the wake of the accident, plans to visit the mine today.
One of the 33 miners is a Bolivian national and Bolivian President Evo Morales has vowed to visit the mine for his rescue.
