Although mines are incomparably safer today than in recent decades past, danger still lurks around every corner for miners:
A mining company executive said he was "very discouraged" by air quality tests found by a hole punched into a West Virginia mine where 13 miners are trapped 260 feet below the surface.
Still, Ben Hatfield, chief executive officer of mine owner International Coal Group Inc., said the trapped miners could still be alive.
"They could be in another location or they could be barricaded somewhere," Hatfield told reporters.
Carbon monoxide levels measured 1,300 parts per million, exceeding the 400 parts per million maximum level that sustains life, said Hatfield.
"We are very discouraged by the results of this test," Hatfield said.
... The accident happened as miners prepared to re-open the mine after a holiday shutdown, reports Orr. Officials say workers riding in two railcars were slowly working their way down a two-mile long tunnel when something triggered an explosion, trapping those in the front car, nearly two miles inside the mountain. Those in the back car scrambled to safety unhurt.
Four co-workers tried to reach them immediately after the explosion but stopped because of contaminated air. The blast knocked out the mine's communication equipment, preventing authorities from contacting the miners.
Although being a coal miner is not one of our nation's most dangerous jobs, the mining industry in general is still the most dangerous, with 23.5 deaths per every 100,000 workers.
Here's what the air quality tests mean: an explosion is simply a VERY fast-burning fire. Explosions consume a great deal of oxygen in a tiny amount of time. Because explosions are fires, normal combustion by-products are also created: water vapor, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide (CO) is dangerous because is is absorbed through the lungs by hemoglobin in our blood, just like oxygen. But when blood hemoglobin becomes saturated with CO, it cannot absorb enough oxygen. This results in oxygen deprivation to critical areas such as the heart and brain. Prolonged oxygen deprivation leads ultimately to death.
The mine situation is grave not only because of the elevated levels of CO, but because the explosion and fire would have consumed a great deal of available oxygen. This means that oxygen deprivation will probably occur at an accelerated rate, since there is less available oxygen to counteract the abundant amount of CO in the air.
The families of the miners, no doubt accustomed to grief that comes with the wail of sirens at the mines, haven't given up hope. But the situation is very serious now, and chances of recovery seem almost nil. Please keep these brave men and their families in your prayers.
Malkin roundup is here.
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UPDATE: The Lord does answer prayer ...
Families Say 12 W. Va. Miners Found Alive
TALLMANSVILLE, W.Va.
Twelve miners caught in an explosion in a coal mine were found alive Tuesday night, more than 41 hours after the blast, family members said.Bells at a church where relatives had been gathering rang out as family members ran out screaming in jubilation.
Relatives were yelling "They're alive!"
One miner was found dead earlier Tuesday, the mine's owner, International Coal Group Inc. said.
Neither the company nor the govenor's office immediately confirmed the news.
There were hugs and tears among the crowd outside the Sago Baptist Church loacted near the mine, about 100 miles northeast of Charleston.
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UPDATE 2, 9:30 AM 1-4-06 -- TRAGEDY
Let's be thankful for the lone survivor, and remember the families of the others in our prayers.
In reality, rescuers had only confirmed finding 12 miners and were checking their vital signs. But what leaked out to anxious family members was that 12 were found alive.
A company spokesman, sounding like another Michael Brown, explained, ''Let's put this in perspective. Who do I tell not to celebrate? I didn't know if there were 12 or 1 [who were alive].''
"About the confusion, I can't tell you of anything more heart-wrenching than I've ever gone through in my life. Nothing," Gov. Joe Manchin, who had helped spread the good news, said.
The sole survivor of the Sago, West Virginia, disaster, identified by mining officials as 27-year-old Randal McCloy, was in the hospital in critical condition, a doctor said. When he arrived, he was unconscious but moaning, the hospital said.
Families gathered at the Sago Baptist Church began running out of the church and crying just before midnight, yelling, "They're alive!"
As an ambulance drove away from the mine carrying what families believed was the first survivor, they applauded, not yet knowing there were no others.
Echoes of Katrina, anyone? Disgraceful. So much for "multiple layers of checks and balances."
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