Trapped miners put on brave face

About five minutes of what is reportedly a 45-minute video was shown on Chilean television.

The men made the video with a small camera sent down through a small emergency shaft drilled to their emergency shelter deep in the San Jos mine.

The grainy night-vision images show some men standing, others lying down and apparently just waking up. One man proudly displays the way they have organised the living room-sized shelter where they took refuge after a landslide trapped them August 5. They also showed off areas outside the shelter where they can walk around.

One miner gives a guided tour through the ample space where the men have plenty of room to stand and lie down.

He shows where the men meet and pray daily and points out the "little cup to brush our teeth".

"We have everything organised," he says.

The few items they have are carefully laid out: a first aid cabinet, shelves holding unidentified bottles, mats in a corner for rest.

As the camera shows a table with dominoes laid out, the tour guide says: "This is where we entertain ourselves, where we play cards."

"We meet here every day," he adds. "We plan, we have assemblies here every day so that all the decisions we make are based on the thoughts of all 33."

The camera was sent down through a bore-hole used for communications. Another small hole that snakes down to the men's shelter is used for lowering food and a third provides ventilation.

Many of the miners appeared in the video wearing their hard hats. As the camera pans to them, some flash peace signs, wave and smile. Others look groggy as if just awakened.

"Greetings to my family. Get us out of here soon, please," says one unidentified man.