The last of 39 miners who had been buried one kilometer deep in eastern Canada for over three days came to the surface early Wednesday and were hailed by family members, officials said according to AFP.

What had happened? The miners were stranded after an accident destroyed their transportation system, at its Totten mine in Sudbury, Canada, blocking off access to the main exit on Sunday afternoon.

A large scoop bucket had separated and crashed with the sewer network around 650 feet below the surface, leaving it unusable, according to Vale the mining company.

Since Sunday, all activities at the Totten mine in Sudbury, Ontario, have been suspended, and Vale has stated that it would undertake an evaluation before resuming production.

The rescue mission, which began on Monday night, was successful in saving all 39 miners.

In a statement, Vale, a Brazilian mining company, praised rescuers for "bringing our 39 colleagues home safe and healthy."

"This was great news coming from extremely tough conditions," business CEO Eduardo Bartolomeo said after meeting with miners and rescuers in Sudbury, Ontario. The premier of Ontario, Doug Ford, likewise expressed his relief that the miners were "safely above ground and unharmed."

Great news! All 39 miners in #Sudbury have been successfully rescued from the Totten Mine. On behalf of all Ontarians, we are
all very relieved that you’re safely above ground and uninjured.

Thank you to the rescue teams who worked tirelessly to get these miners safely home!

— Doug Ford (@fordnation) September 29, 2021

The last of four miners who made their way to the surface on Wednesday departed around 4:45 a.m. local time,(0845 GMT) according to a union statement.

After making the arduous climb to the surface, each miner was medically examined, and their health will be monitored in the following days.