Thirty-three miners who have been trapped underground in a Chilean mine for the past 17 days are all alive, President Sebastian Pinera has said.
Rescuers heard hammering noises when they sent a new probe into the mine.
When the probe came back it had a note tied to it saying "there are 33 workers alive down here," a rescue worker said.
The men were working at a depth of around 700m (2,300ft) at the San Jose mine, near the city of Copiapo, when the rock above them collapsed.
The note, written on paper in red letters read: "All 33 of us are fine in the shelter."
Until Sunday, there had been no word from the miners and hopes for their survival had all but faded.
Brandishing the miners' note for TV cameras, Mr Pinera hailed the news saying:
"It will take months to get them out. It will take time, but it doesn't matter how long it takes, to have a happy ending."
The miners are reported to be 4.5 miles (7km) inside gold and copper mine and about 700m vertically underground.
They have been since 5 August when the main access tunnel collapsed.
Rescuers plan to send narrow plastic tubes down the borehole with food, hydration gels and communications equipment, including cameras and microphones.
