Chile's 33 miners trapped for a record 69 days deep underground finally woke up to the day of their rescue.

At 12:10 a.m. local time Wednesday, the first and the stoutest of the miners, Florencio Avalos, emerged from a rescue capsule after his 622-meter journey to the surface.

As his uncle, Alberto Avalos, said, the rescue operation is "a miracle from God" as no one in history has ever been trapped deep underground for so long and survived. The massive rescue effort leaves revelations and expertise in handling one of the world's most challenging rescues ever.