Post by ۞Quaalude™۞ on Aug 6, 2007 21:35:16 GMT -5
HUNTINGTON, Utah - Hundreds of rescuers broke through walls of rock Monday in a desperate race to reach six coal miners trapped 1,500 feet below ground by a cave-in so powerful authorities initially thought it was an earthquake. Hours after the collapse, which did not appear related to an explosion, searchers had been unable to contact the miners and could not say whether they were dead or alive. If they survived, a mine executive said, they could have enough air and water to last several days.
"We're going to get them," said Robert E. Murray, chairman of Murray Energy Corp. of Cleveland, a part owner of the Crandall Canyon mine. "There is nothing on my mind right now except getting those miners out."
The mining crew was believed to be about four miles from the mine entrance. Rescuers were working to free the men by drilling into the mine vertically from the mountaintop and horizontally from the side, Murray said. Officials estimated that drilling vertically could take three days.
If they are able to open an old mine shaft, Murray said, rescuers believe they can get within 100 feet of where the men are trapped.
"The idea is to get a hole into where they are," Murray said. "They could be in a chamber 1,000 feet long or they could be dead. We just don't know right now."
Doug Johnson, director of corporate services at an affiliated company, UtahAmerican Energy, said rescuers had made "decent progress," but they were not much closer to the men.
Relatives of the miners waited for news at a nearby senior center. Many of the family members don't speak English, so Huntington Mayor Hilary Gordon hugged them, put her hands over her heart and then clasped them together to let them know she was praying for them, she said.
"Past experience tells us these things don't go very well," said Gordon, whose husband is a former miner.
Outside the senior center, Ariana Sanchez, 16, said her father Manuel Sanchez, 42, was among the trapped miners. She said she cried when her mother told her the news, and declined further comment.
The mine uses a method called "retreat mining," in which pillars of coal are used to hold up an area of the mine's roof. When that area is completely mined, the company pulls the pillar and grabs the useful coal, causing an intentional collapse. Experts say it is one of the most dangerous mining methods.
Federal mine-safety inspectors, who have issued more than 300 citations against the mine since January 2004, were also on hand to help oversee the search.
Murray said no expense would be spared to save the men. The company had enlisted the help of 200 employees and four rescue crews, and brought in all available equipment from around the state.
The mine is built into a mountain in the rugged Manti-La Sal National Forest, 140 miles south of Salt Lake City, in a sparsely populated area.
By mid-afternoon, rescuers were within 1,700 feet of the miners' presumed location, Murray said. It was not known what kind of breathing equipment the miners had.
University of Utah seismograph stations recorded seismic waves of 3.9 magnitude around early Monday in the area of the mine, causing speculation that a minor earthquake had caused the cave-in. Scientists later realized the collapse at the mine had caused the disturbance, reported to authorities around 4 a.m. But by late afternoon, they said a natural earthquake could not be ruled out and more information was needed to conclusively determine what happened.
Murray said the earthquake's epicenter was a mile from the trapped miners.
"The whole problem has been caused by an earthquake," Murray angrily insisted.
Since the mid-1990s, at least a half-dozen other mine collapses have caused similar seismic waves, including a 1995 cave-in in southwestern Wyoming that caused readings as high as a magnitude 5.4.
Murray believed the miners have plenty of air because oxygen naturally leaks into the mine. The mine also is stocked with drinking water.
"I'm so hopeful for those guys. They should have lots of oxygen to breathe," said Mary Ann Wright, associate director for mining in the Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining.
"From not having heard that there's any type of fire, that's always good news. If they're trapped in a cavern area, there should be oxygen to breathe," Wright said.
Government mine inspectors have issued 325 citations against the mine since January 2004, according to a quick analysis of federal Mine Safety and Health Administration online records. Of those, 116 were what the government considered "significant and substantial," meaning they are likely to cause injury.
The 325 safety violations is not unusual, said J. Davitt McAteer, former head of the MHSA and now vice president of Wheeling Jesuit University in West Virginia.
"It's not perfect but it's certainly not bad," McAteer said. "It would be in the medium range."
In 2007, inspectors have issued 32 citations against the mine, 14 of them considered significant.
Last month, inspectors cited the mine for violating a rule requiring that at least two separate passageways be designated for escape in an emergency.
It was the third time in less than two years that the mine had been cited for the same problem, according to MSHA records. In 2005, MSHA ordered the mine owners to pay $963 for not having escapeways and the 2006 fine for the same problem was just $60.
Overall, the federal government has ordered the mine owner to pay nearly $152,000 in penalties for its 325 violations with many citations having no fines calculated yet. Since January, the mine owner has paid $130,678 in fines, according to MSHA records.
Asked about safety, Murray told reporters: "I believe we run a very safe coal mine. We've had an excellent record."
Gov. Jon Huntsman broke away from a wildfire forum in Boise, Idaho, to return to Utah.
"We're going to expend every resource we have and make every effort to make sure lives are put first and foremost," he said as he departed Boise.
The head of MSHA, Richard Stickler, said he would be at the site Tuesday.
Utah ranked 12th in coal production in 2006. It had 13 underground coal mines in 2005, the most recent statistics available, according to the Utah Geological Survey.
Emery County, the state's No. 2 coal-producer, also was the site of a fire that killed 27 people in the Wilburg mine in December 1984.
HUNTINGTON, Utah - Efforts to reach six coal miners trapped more than 1,500 feet underground will take at least three days, and rescuers weren't even sure the men had survived the cave-in, one of the mine's owners said Tuesday.
Crews worked through the night in shifts, with teams coming and going along the road leading to the Crandall Canyon mine in a forested canyon.
"The Lord has already decided whether they're alive or dead," said Robert E. Murray, chairman of Murray Energy Corp. of Cleveland, a part owner of the Crandall Canyon mine. "But it's up to Bob Murray and my management to get access to them as quickly as we can."
If all goes well, it will still take three days to reach the chamber where the miners are believed to be, he said. Even then, rescuers will have only a 2-inch hole into the chamber through which to communicate with the miners and provide them food or air, he said.
Little was known about the six miners. Only one has been identified, but Mexico's consul in Salt Lake City, Salvador Jimenez, said three of the men are Mexican citizens.
Jimenez said he did not know any details about the men, including whether they are U.S. residents, their ages or hometowns.
Crews moved only 310 feet closer to the miners in the first 30 hours after the cave-in, Murray said.
Attempts were halted overnight after a "bump" in which coal was dislodged from the mine's ribs, said Al Davis, an official with the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration.
"They're digging as much as they can, even with their hands," said Julie Jones, a city councilwoman whose son, Elam, works at the mine.
The trapped miners were believed to be in a chamber 3.4 miles inside the mine. Rescuers were able to reach a point about 1,700 feet from that point before being blocked by debris.
"Right now I can't say if it's looking any better," weary miner Leland Lobato said around dawn. "They're doing what they can to keep everybody as fresh as possible so nobody gets tired."
Two C-130s from the 911th Airlift Wing of the Air Reserve in Pittsburgh were being sent seismic equipment and staff, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said.
Murray said there were 30 pieces of "massive" mining equipment in place and 134 people dedicated to the rescue.
He insisted that an earthquake caused the cave-in and angrily denied that a dangerous method called retreat mining was taking place at the time.
In that method, pillars of coal are used to hold up an area of the mine's roof. When that area is completely mined, pillars are pulled to get access to useful coal, causing an intentional collapse.
"The pillars were not being removed here at the time of the accident. There are eight solid pillars around where the men are right now," Murray said.
University of Utah seismograph stations recorded seismic waves of 3.9 magnitude Monday, though scientists said it was unclear if the collapse caused the earthquake or the quake came first.
The mine is built into a mountain in the rugged Manti-La Sal National Forest, 140 miles south of Salt Lake City, in a sparsely populated area.
Emery County Sheriff Lamar Guymon said 90 percent of the community is tied to coal mining or energy production.
"This affects everybody, not just six families," he said.
Many family members don't speak English, so Huntington Mayor Hilary Gordon said she hugged them, put her hands over her heart and then clasped them together to let them know she was praying for them.
Government mine inspectors have issued 325 citations against the mine since January 2004, according to a quick analysis of federal Mine Safety and Health Administration online records. Of those, 116 were what the government considered "significant and substantial," meaning they are likely to cause injury.
The 325 safety violations is not unusual, said J. Davitt McAteer, former head of the MSHA and now vice president of Wheeling Jesuit University in West Virginia.
"It's not perfect but it's certainly not bad," McAteer said.
This year, inspectors have issued 32 citations against the mine, 14 of them considered significant.
Emery County, the state's No. 2 coal-producer, also was the site of a fire that killed 27 people in the Wilburg mine in December 1984.
it's just a Sad Thing We Need Better Solutions for These Events . QC
news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070807/ap_on_re_us/utah_mine_collapse
"We're going to get them," said Robert E. Murray, chairman of Murray Energy Corp. of Cleveland, a part owner of the Crandall Canyon mine. "There is nothing on my mind right now except getting those miners out."
The mining crew was believed to be about four miles from the mine entrance. Rescuers were working to free the men by drilling into the mine vertically from the mountaintop and horizontally from the side, Murray said. Officials estimated that drilling vertically could take three days.
If they are able to open an old mine shaft, Murray said, rescuers believe they can get within 100 feet of where the men are trapped.
"The idea is to get a hole into where they are," Murray said. "They could be in a chamber 1,000 feet long or they could be dead. We just don't know right now."
Doug Johnson, director of corporate services at an affiliated company, UtahAmerican Energy, said rescuers had made "decent progress," but they were not much closer to the men.
Relatives of the miners waited for news at a nearby senior center. Many of the family members don't speak English, so Huntington Mayor Hilary Gordon hugged them, put her hands over her heart and then clasped them together to let them know she was praying for them, she said.
"Past experience tells us these things don't go very well," said Gordon, whose husband is a former miner.
Outside the senior center, Ariana Sanchez, 16, said her father Manuel Sanchez, 42, was among the trapped miners. She said she cried when her mother told her the news, and declined further comment.
The mine uses a method called "retreat mining," in which pillars of coal are used to hold up an area of the mine's roof. When that area is completely mined, the company pulls the pillar and grabs the useful coal, causing an intentional collapse. Experts say it is one of the most dangerous mining methods.
Federal mine-safety inspectors, who have issued more than 300 citations against the mine since January 2004, were also on hand to help oversee the search.
Murray said no expense would be spared to save the men. The company had enlisted the help of 200 employees and four rescue crews, and brought in all available equipment from around the state.
The mine is built into a mountain in the rugged Manti-La Sal National Forest, 140 miles south of Salt Lake City, in a sparsely populated area.
By mid-afternoon, rescuers were within 1,700 feet of the miners' presumed location, Murray said. It was not known what kind of breathing equipment the miners had.
University of Utah seismograph stations recorded seismic waves of 3.9 magnitude around early Monday in the area of the mine, causing speculation that a minor earthquake had caused the cave-in. Scientists later realized the collapse at the mine had caused the disturbance, reported to authorities around 4 a.m. But by late afternoon, they said a natural earthquake could not be ruled out and more information was needed to conclusively determine what happened.
Murray said the earthquake's epicenter was a mile from the trapped miners.
"The whole problem has been caused by an earthquake," Murray angrily insisted.
Since the mid-1990s, at least a half-dozen other mine collapses have caused similar seismic waves, including a 1995 cave-in in southwestern Wyoming that caused readings as high as a magnitude 5.4.
Murray believed the miners have plenty of air because oxygen naturally leaks into the mine. The mine also is stocked with drinking water.
"I'm so hopeful for those guys. They should have lots of oxygen to breathe," said Mary Ann Wright, associate director for mining in the Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining.
"From not having heard that there's any type of fire, that's always good news. If they're trapped in a cavern area, there should be oxygen to breathe," Wright said.
Government mine inspectors have issued 325 citations against the mine since January 2004, according to a quick analysis of federal Mine Safety and Health Administration online records. Of those, 116 were what the government considered "significant and substantial," meaning they are likely to cause injury.
The 325 safety violations is not unusual, said J. Davitt McAteer, former head of the MHSA and now vice president of Wheeling Jesuit University in West Virginia.
"It's not perfect but it's certainly not bad," McAteer said. "It would be in the medium range."
In 2007, inspectors have issued 32 citations against the mine, 14 of them considered significant.
Last month, inspectors cited the mine for violating a rule requiring that at least two separate passageways be designated for escape in an emergency.
It was the third time in less than two years that the mine had been cited for the same problem, according to MSHA records. In 2005, MSHA ordered the mine owners to pay $963 for not having escapeways and the 2006 fine for the same problem was just $60.
Overall, the federal government has ordered the mine owner to pay nearly $152,000 in penalties for its 325 violations with many citations having no fines calculated yet. Since January, the mine owner has paid $130,678 in fines, according to MSHA records.
Asked about safety, Murray told reporters: "I believe we run a very safe coal mine. We've had an excellent record."
Gov. Jon Huntsman broke away from a wildfire forum in Boise, Idaho, to return to Utah.
"We're going to expend every resource we have and make every effort to make sure lives are put first and foremost," he said as he departed Boise.
The head of MSHA, Richard Stickler, said he would be at the site Tuesday.
Utah ranked 12th in coal production in 2006. It had 13 underground coal mines in 2005, the most recent statistics available, according to the Utah Geological Survey.
Emery County, the state's No. 2 coal-producer, also was the site of a fire that killed 27 people in the Wilburg mine in December 1984.
HUNTINGTON, Utah - Efforts to reach six coal miners trapped more than 1,500 feet underground will take at least three days, and rescuers weren't even sure the men had survived the cave-in, one of the mine's owners said Tuesday.
Crews worked through the night in shifts, with teams coming and going along the road leading to the Crandall Canyon mine in a forested canyon.
"The Lord has already decided whether they're alive or dead," said Robert E. Murray, chairman of Murray Energy Corp. of Cleveland, a part owner of the Crandall Canyon mine. "But it's up to Bob Murray and my management to get access to them as quickly as we can."
If all goes well, it will still take three days to reach the chamber where the miners are believed to be, he said. Even then, rescuers will have only a 2-inch hole into the chamber through which to communicate with the miners and provide them food or air, he said.
Little was known about the six miners. Only one has been identified, but Mexico's consul in Salt Lake City, Salvador Jimenez, said three of the men are Mexican citizens.
Jimenez said he did not know any details about the men, including whether they are U.S. residents, their ages or hometowns.
Crews moved only 310 feet closer to the miners in the first 30 hours after the cave-in, Murray said.
Attempts were halted overnight after a "bump" in which coal was dislodged from the mine's ribs, said Al Davis, an official with the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration.
"They're digging as much as they can, even with their hands," said Julie Jones, a city councilwoman whose son, Elam, works at the mine.
The trapped miners were believed to be in a chamber 3.4 miles inside the mine. Rescuers were able to reach a point about 1,700 feet from that point before being blocked by debris.
"Right now I can't say if it's looking any better," weary miner Leland Lobato said around dawn. "They're doing what they can to keep everybody as fresh as possible so nobody gets tired."
Two C-130s from the 911th Airlift Wing of the Air Reserve in Pittsburgh were being sent seismic equipment and staff, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said.
Murray said there were 30 pieces of "massive" mining equipment in place and 134 people dedicated to the rescue.
He insisted that an earthquake caused the cave-in and angrily denied that a dangerous method called retreat mining was taking place at the time.
In that method, pillars of coal are used to hold up an area of the mine's roof. When that area is completely mined, pillars are pulled to get access to useful coal, causing an intentional collapse.
"The pillars were not being removed here at the time of the accident. There are eight solid pillars around where the men are right now," Murray said.
University of Utah seismograph stations recorded seismic waves of 3.9 magnitude Monday, though scientists said it was unclear if the collapse caused the earthquake or the quake came first.
The mine is built into a mountain in the rugged Manti-La Sal National Forest, 140 miles south of Salt Lake City, in a sparsely populated area.
Emery County Sheriff Lamar Guymon said 90 percent of the community is tied to coal mining or energy production.
"This affects everybody, not just six families," he said.
Many family members don't speak English, so Huntington Mayor Hilary Gordon said she hugged them, put her hands over her heart and then clasped them together to let them know she was praying for them.
Government mine inspectors have issued 325 citations against the mine since January 2004, according to a quick analysis of federal Mine Safety and Health Administration online records. Of those, 116 were what the government considered "significant and substantial," meaning they are likely to cause injury.
The 325 safety violations is not unusual, said J. Davitt McAteer, former head of the MSHA and now vice president of Wheeling Jesuit University in West Virginia.
"It's not perfect but it's certainly not bad," McAteer said.
This year, inspectors have issued 32 citations against the mine, 14 of them considered significant.
Emery County, the state's No. 2 coal-producer, also was the site of a fire that killed 27 people in the Wilburg mine in December 1984.
it's just a Sad Thing We Need Better Solutions for These Events . QC
news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070807/ap_on_re_us/utah_mine_collapse