Gas stops rescuers from entering mine

Associated Press

MONTCOAL, W.Va.

Two full days after the worst U.S. mining disaster in a generation, dangerous gases underground prevented rescuers late Wednesday from venturing into the Upper Big Branch coal mine to search for any survivors of the explosion that killed at least 25 workers.

Crews drilled holes deep into the ground to release the gases. By evening, a federal safety official said the levels of lethal carbon monoxide and highly explosive hydrogen and methane measured at the top of the holes were steadily dropping. Officials by late evening planned to test levels at the bottom of the holes to determine if three teams of five rescuers each can enter.

“We just can’t take any chances” with the lives of rescuers, Kevin Stricklin of the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration had said earlier. “If we’re going to send a rescue team, we have to say it’s safe for them to go in there.”

Officials could not say specifically when rescuers might be able to go in, but if the readings at the bottom were good, they want them on the move as soon as possible, Stricklin said.

Stricklin said relatives of the miners backed the decision to hold off for now.

The federal mine agency appointed a team of investigators to look into the blast, which officials said may have been caused by a buildup of methane.

The mine’s owner, Massey Energy Co., has been repeatedly cited for problems with the system that vents methane and for letting combustible dust build up. On the day of the blast, MSHA cited the mine with two safety violations — one involving inadequate maps of escape routes, the other concerning an improper splice of electrical cable. However, Stricklin said the violations had nothing to do with the blast.

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