Fire Erupts in W.Va. Mine; Two Missing

[deadparrot]

MELLVILLE, W.Va. - A fire erupted in an underground coal mine in southern West Virginia late Thursday and two workers were unaccounted for, authorities said.

The fire was reported at the Aracoma Coal Co. in Mellville, about 60 miles southwest of Charleston, said Lara Ramsburg, spokeswoman for Gov. Joe Manchin.

"There was some type of fire in the deep mine," Ramsburg said. "There are two workers that are currently unaccounted for."

She said she could not confirm an earlier report that the fire involved a conveyer belt that moves coal from the mine to the surface.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/mine_fire

[Mithras61]

1. I guess this is what happens...

when you increase demand for coal and decrease enfocement of laws & regulations. I sincerely hope the two missing workers are found alive & healthy, but I have to say that I'll be surprised if they are.

[GrumpyGreg]

3. I cannot imagine doing that for a living even if there was a

100% guarantee of safety. It's got to be the toughest job there is.

[rsmith6621]

2. Dupe.....

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=189377&mesg_id=189377

[Marie26]

4. Good to see that the Sago mine story

resulted in more safety standards for miners. Didn't it?

[rainbow4321]

5. Union, Coal Company Sitting Out Interviews (Sago investigation)

Looks like the investigation interviews have hit a snag


http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MINE_EXPLOSION?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=US

A dispute between the owner of the Sago Mine and the United Mine Workers has led both sides to refrain from sitting in on interviews by state and federal officials investigating this month's fatal explosion at the coal mine.

A union official said neither its representatives nor those of International Coal Group Inc. attended interview sessions Thursday, a day after the company challenged the union's right to take part in the investigation involving a nonunion mine.

Several miners have asked the union to serve as their representative during the investigation, and federal investigators have officially recognized the union as the miners' representative.

The union and the company drafted a written agreement that says neither will participate in the interviews but the union has not approved it, said Phil Smith, the union's director of communications.

[sakabatou]

6. Isn't there another coal mine fire that's still burning?

[spinbaby]

8. Are you thinking of Centralia?

http://www.offroaders.com/album/centralia/centralia.htm

[sakabatou]

14. That's the one!

[JVS]

10. There are plenty of mines burning

[bbernardini]

7. ...and Rita Cosby's show for tonight just wrote itself.

[Marie26]

9. I don't think so

One mining accident is a tragic human interest story; three in a month points to possible serious problems w/mining safety regulations. You couldn't present this story w/o people thinking about that. And we wouldn't want to make people think, right?

[AlCzervik]

12. unless a missing honeymooner was in that mine, don't count on her covering

it.

[yellowcanine]

11. Maybe West Virginians should reconsider their red state status. Mine

safety doesn't seem to be a big priority for the * administration.

[doc03]

13. This company is non-union and owned by

Massey Energy, their CEO Don Blankenship is a Right Wing nut case. Blankenship spent something on the order of $4 mil. to put his own judge in the WV Supreme Court last year. Blankenship ran a Swift Boat type campaign for his man that had no courtroom experience and won. Blankenship has vowed to buy himself another judge in the next election. He wants to get control of the courts so he has a free hand in his mining business and his own Right Wing agenda.

Edited for link:

http://www.ohvec.org/press_room/press_releases/2004/11_08.html

[Marie26]

15. Another non-union mine.

What a coincidence. :eyes: