Wednesday, January 04, 2006

BROKEN MIRACLES IN THE WEST VIRGINIA ,12 DEAD MINERS

BREAKING NEWS: OR BROKEN NEWS....BROKEN MIRACLES DOWN IN THE HOLLOWS.
It is 3:08 in the morning,Finally a Press Conference was held by the Company, and the Bossman came out and Admitted that the 12 Trapped Miners were found Dead, and one Critical. Why the Sam Hell it took More than FOUR hours to identify 12 DEAD people, I can not even begin to Fathom.
( I have been watching TV for hours and I have been following the Miner Story. It is in my Blood. I come from kin in West Virginia and Kentucky, I have studied Mines a bit, but that is a story for another time. Please read this I am only writing what I am seeing , there are no online updates or accurate information to give with this post)
( Now at 2:46am Lynnette Roby with her son and daughter Kiki and Travis came out of the Church and ran over to CNN Anderson Cooper and told him that the News was Wrong. She told Anderson that the Mine Owner had come to the Church at 2:30 am and he said that only Errors Were Made and that there was only one survivor. She also said that he had come to the Church earlier and said that the Miners would be brought to their loved ones before they went to the Hospital, but that now the families were being told that the Miners were indeed dead.The families were horror stricken and you could hear yelling and screaming and fighting up in the Church. Right after this interview The Press Conference began by the Bossman of the Company).

At 10:30pm we were told that the Miners had been located and were told that the Miners were Found, and found Alive. That the Waiting Families were told this information waiting at the Church. And yet, all eve only one ambulance went by. CNN spoke with the local hospital, and the ER doctor they said had been dispatched to the site. ( As an old ER nurse I am thinking that is not a good sign, sometimes in small towns the ER doctors are also the Medical Examiner). Yet the company said Nothing, and there was never a Press Conference, UNTIL 3am. Most of America has already gone to bed, thinking that the Miners were Alive, because NO Company Statement was issued. ( As of 11:30pm I switched over to Dave Letterman, and I was still thinking well they say that the Miners are alive...so I was thinking well, we'll see how many to go to the Hospital and what condition they are in).

[No Families or Media were allowed to the mine site, and the Results of the Carbon Monoxide levels have never been made public, the ones obtained by a robot yesterday. So I am still thinking that Something is NOT Right. So this was nagging me....and so at 3am I am thinking whelp I will check CNN one more time and see what is going on, and that is when I see the Press Conference... and the Redfaced Bossman is giving a conference, and admits that the Carbon Monoxide levels were well above 300ppm. That is too high, not compatible with life for long periods of time.Dead Canary High.}

The Bossman ( his name was not on the screen) said that he went to the Command Centerto Celebrate the Miracle and he found out 20 minutes after the Initial reports and that some were Dead. NOW WHY the hell NO ONE said Anything? It would not be hard to give a report and say "We are concerned that some of the Found Miners may be Critical or Dead". These West Virginia Folks are smart- they know mining, hell if they knew how high the Methane levels were , those families would have been prepared for the worst.( I think it was very deceptive of the company not to release the levels earlier- it means they knew that the Company fostered False Hopes and caused the families pain they certainly did not need).

Even in the past three years since the last wretched Mine Disaster ,it is known that many Protective Regulations have been rolled back and altered and it Deserves Scrutiny. ( The Company was operating with a slew of Safety Violations, total of 208 , enough to close the Mines). I also find it very odd that the last time that this happened in Pennsylvania, there were atleast hourly accurate updates. Once the families were confined up in the Church and the Media and the families were not allowed at the Mine site and Media not IN the Church, I think some Problems are going on. At the last Disaster, Equipment was shown, Mining Experts on site were Interviewed and Information was shared, partly because when information is shared this keeps Families Calm. I am wondering now that Mining and Energy is under the Government Reigns and Clouds of the Defense Dept. and Homeland Security did not BLOCK effective Communication to Media and Families. And it is also very obvious that the COMPANY was controlling the Outlet of ALL information. But if you were watching like I was you would have seen that the Media Coverage was Muzzled and Ineffective. And it was not for lack of trying, CNN, MSNBC and even Fox had all their best in place.The Company had HOURS to Correct The Mistake, instead they let the "Good News " sit for Hours.The Company let the Families "Jubilate and Celebrate" said the Bossman.

Randall MacCloy is the only survivor Minor, 27 years old and he is in Critical condition and was unconscious. He is now on a ventilator and being transferred to a Level One trauma level.

Sago is a small town, a Company Town, a mere Hollow in West Virginia, 418 people that all view each other as Family. Why did the company lie to these good hardworking people after 40 hours of Anguish....Ask yourself this....

We are living in a Culture Where LIES are Embraced and Perpetuated....and there is fallout...and we are seeing it. Has the Mining Regulators and Safety Monitors experienced a Femanized Agency ? And indeed the Mining Owner who knew 20 minutes after the Miners were found that they were indeed Dead, WHY didn't he say Something. I guess we do indeed have another Heckuva Job Brownie Award to give out ?- to MrBossman ( Mr Hatfield Blaming the Miscommunication....Now I don't know ALL the details , but Intentionally letting these families wait at that Church to see their loved ones for Hours, that is Lying, plain and simple. And Lying by Omission of Facts Doesn't Clear ANY Blame.)

One Family member ,Anna, one brave woman standing in the cold rain told Chad OBrien at 3:30 am " We was told that they were ALIVE and that they was going to bring them up here to the Church, then we heard Nothing for Three Hours. No one said Nothing. We Deserve the Truth, we are Americans, People should be Angry for and with us."

Families were and are so Angry and Hurt.....We should share their Angst and Rage.This Ain't Right.

UPDATE: as of today Friday January 6th, the International Coal Group has posted three small notices FINALLY on their
website about the disaster, and set a Fund for the family , and posted the names of those effected, and the Dead.
I will be updating blog over weekend with mor information. Skeptical Oberserver has been following closely, and has good info. and also ALF-CIO has good information about this situation- google them + Sago Mine.

33 comments:

enigma4ever said...

I posted at 3:30am on this after the press conference of 3:08am. There was no links to add to the story, as nothing has been posted as of 4am. CNN still has not updated their site even. The Governor just gave a press conference and said that it was a Miscommunication....well, someone is going to have to do better than that....So I am sorry I don't have more details...or links to give...

enigma4ever said...

This is Carbon Monoxide Poisoning, which considering the levels were above 300, of course there were fatalities. The 26 yr old MrMalloy is Critical, and is now on a ventilator, and we will see if he survives. If he survives his quality of life is very questioanble. I think the Owners were being treated with kid gloves and impunity...it does not take 3 hours to diagnose Death....The Mine Owners need to Pay for this "error".....CRIMINAL..

enigma4ever said...

update 6:15am Still NO updates on International Coal Group has NO updates or press releases at all about the WVa Disaster....

Unknown said...

You know what really made me sick about this is the media coverage. It seems like every time something like this happens, the media flocks to the scene in droves, like vultures awaiting the newly deceased. Here they are, asking family members how they feel after finding out that the intial reports given to them were completely wrong... HOW THE HELL DO YOU THINK THEY FEEL!? MAYBE LIKE THEIR HEARTS HAD BEEN VIOLENTLY RIPPED OUT?

It makes me sick..it really does. The media is there for one reason only... to get, and profit off the tragedy of others.

Anonymous said...

Enigma,
I was up late too, went to sleep hearing one thing, woke up at five am to another story. I posted on it this morning too because it made me pissed. Not because I had anything intelligent to say, but just because I wanted to vote for pissedivity...The fact that they made a mistake isn't what bothers me the most, although thats sick too. Mistakes happen, I suppose, in their greedy ZEAL. It bothers me the way they (as described above) DO act like tragedy vultures. I can appreciate that they are 'waiting for the story' but in the meantime, stop yapping about bullshit and talking to Sanjay Gupta about what an ambulance can do and talk about the fucking weasel, violating company!!! How many times do these mines (and other such places) get cited or spanked with no real accoutnability? Why aren't we hearing about enforcement of safety? We never hear about that. Ugh. Thanks for listening.

Weston said...

What a tragedy for all the families involved! The news agencies who reported "12 Alive" need to recall the Aaron Brown days at CNN when he was often heard saying: "Is that what we're hearing, or is that what we know?"

enigma4ever said...

To my readers, I deleted the Anony comment that was more than a bit rude and dismissive of others concern about the situation...sorry I did not get to it sooner...This blog is a place to share. No one on my blog is berated or called names.period. Trolls not welcome or tolerated.

To others thanks you for your concerns and comments about this situation....

enigma4ever said...

Weston yes, I too miss Aaron Brown, and his questions....
and Lynn in Canada- thanks for posting about Canadian Mining Disasters- and you are right we need to learn from History....And Lily yes, Accountability is a long ago dream , and Chasing Dogma, you are right that the media did not ask enough of the right questions, they were more focused on the tragedy...not the Facts.We'll see what happens next...the poor fellow McCloy is in bad shape- Many prayers and thoughts to the families in the Sago Hollow...

( and to the idiot Anony that left the snippy messege, I have found no faults in the Rescue people..I have some concerns about the Company that lied to the people for three hours, and also already had pre-existing safety violations -238. And the Government for not shutting them down and enforcing the safety regs. I hope the Lawyers have arrived- those families should seek justice)

enigma4ever said...

The International Coal Group STILL HAS NOT POSTED ANY INFO ON THE DISASTER on their website.....as of 6pm wed.

Yukkione said...

Yes, to bad Aaron Brown was pushed out in favor of Wolf "the tool" Blitzer. Gone are the days of intelligent questioning and the notion that news anchors should actually be made of flesh, not just bearded automitons. "Welcome to the Situation room." As for the miners.. (sorry my mind drifts), the mine had over 200 infractions... To bad the Bush energy initiatives hadnt all gone through, less regulation, fewer infractions.

meldonna said...

Thanks, e4e, for getting this post up; I didn't get much sleep myself last night. I haven't posted on it yet myself because I'll get to crying again. I saw a lady tonight on the news who put it pretty succinctly in reference to being given false hope: "We're West Virginians. We may be dumb, but we love our families."

I tuned in to Letterman just in time to see him skewer that ijit O'Reilly just a few minutes after finding out for sure only one fella survived (our TV schedule is strange out here on the Left Coast, and I don't have cable); I had to appreciate Dave getting the best of Bill. In the bigger pic, the radical right has much blood on it's hands, and the deaths in W.VA are the latest examples. We gotta get our country back -- for the real people that actually make it work, with their blood, sweat, and tears.

I'm so hurt for the folks of Sago, I just don't know what to say.

meldonna said...

sadly, only too true, vper.

Kanye said Bush don't care about black people, but the larger truth is the folks running our entire country don't care about ANY people, especially the poor. And people who actually WORK for a living -- they're so proud of their "tort reform", their "tax reform", and their "bankruptcy reform"; it's all just part of keeping the workin' folks so far in debt that exploitation is joyous for the bottom line, while the workin' folk are too damn busy trying to keep the lights and the heat on to do anything. e4e is right -- mine safety has been gutted along with everything else, and this is just another sad result of the corporate wet dream.

enigma4ever said...

First off Anony- Yes, you came to this Blog and were Insensitive- people were grieving, and verbalizing concerns and shock over the Events in W.Va. So you dropped in on my nice readers and called them "sheep" and basically insulted their intelligence.And yeah, someone that Picks on Greiving people is either a Idiot or A Bully- take your pick. And Yes, Bullies or Insensitivity is not tolerated on MY blog ( it has nothing to do with Censtoship- it is about MANNERS). It was unnecessary, and rude to people who want to discuss a tragedy with hearts and minds open. And Obviously you don't come to my blog often, because you would know I have strict rules, NO TROLLS, and NO Offending or Insulting my readers. They are wise activists, they don't come here for a fight or arguments, they come here to think and dialogue freely. So yes, once again you have been deleted. Please take your argumentative attitude to other blogs, it is isn't welcome here.And my little posse of readers know that I treat this Blog as a Coffee Shop, I look out for my guests, and their comfort is important to a process that I am trying to foster, that is respectful dialogue. So move along Anony.

enigma4ever said...

To e4e visitors I share your concerns and hear you loud and clear, it is true that we need Better Media, but the Media can't be totally blamed, there was a Huge Heavy handed Corporate Approach to this tragedy- the Mine Bossman told the Church families that their men were coming...only to Finally retract his Version three hours later- that is cruel and inexcusable....Atleast tonight most of the Media, CNN, and MSNBC did indeed TRY to dissect what the hell happened...and they APOLOGIZED...Bossman tried to Blame the Townies and the media for "Miscommunication"...( fairly irresponsible). But all of that can be useful for the lawsuits I guess....Many prayers to the families and all effected by this awful tragedy....Thanks for visiting and commenting...

TFLS said...

I am angry that the focus seems to be on blaming the rescuers for 'miscommunication'. The blame lies solely on the shoulders of the mine owners who, after discerning the truth, still waited 3 hours before informing the families. And it was the governor who took that responsibility - the mine owners didn't have the humanity to stand up and take their medicine. This shows a complete lack of respect for the men who died, along with the families they left behind. God – greed and lack of empathy have become a national disease – don’t you agree?

enigma4ever said...

Fat lady- I so agree with what you say- I am very concerned the way the Company has been coddled and pampered by the govt , and even by the media, they should be forced to answer many questions, including about the 40 safety violations of December alone- and I thought the whole thing was handled really strange- and yes the media, the townies and rescue people ( and even the Red Cross ) were blamed today= by the Company....it is disrespectful to all...still does not explain WHY three hours went by-= three hours of lies.... ( and this whole disaster was much different than the Penn. 2002 disaster)and yes there is NO transparency or accountability with this administration- and now it shows how pervasive it is...

Lily said...

I agree with FLS, totally. A disease.

enigma4ever said...

Lilly and Monica and FLS it amazes me that they left the bodies down there, overnight, WHY???? and why were the families kept away from the mines? that is not standard, often they are allowed to hold vigil by the mines, as are the Media.Something about this whole mess smells....Those men had time to set up a shelter and make decisons together...and write messeges, their brains were working.( I hope the messeges were left with the bodies. The older miners, some near retirement knew what to do.And they were only 300 ft from where the first sensor was dropped. Also today , thursday it came out that it took the company 1.5 hours to call Emergency.The way this whole thing has been handled has been incredibly disrespectful, and Nothing has been said about having a Transparent, public Investigation....It has all the earmarkings of Katrina, in many ways....I need to do some research on the Mining Safety and see if indeed it now falls under Homeland Security- I have a bad feeling....

Anonymous said...

Bits and Pieces of the Truth have harmed more than helped. I send my prayers out tonight for all of the families and friends of the Miners. I know that the hurt will last along time I hope with all the anger that exist, we can show Love and kindness to those who are hurting, but more kindness to the Children who have to deal with this tradgedy and they may not know how. Most of the adults are still trying to manage their feelings so Pray if you Pray send energy and thoughts of Love Hope and Healing to the point of Heartbreak. Our People are hurting.

enigma4ever said...

to the Anony of Late Thursday night, I am not sure what you mean by the Truth causing harm, but I agree that we should all keep these families and their children in out prayers and thoughts. You say "our people are hurting" and I am sure that the folks of the Mining Country are hurting, and that some of us do indeed share that hurt or even understand it....We will keep all these families down in West Virgina in our thoughts, as well as the family with the Critcally injured....these are good people, and they deserve better..We also hope and pray that the Company from here on out treats the families with Honor and Respect....prayers and light to the soul that wrote the post above...

meldonna said...

e...I think what he was trying to say is now is the time to focus on the families, and support them seeing to their precious loved ones. I hear several of the fellows left messages to their families, wishing them strenght and letting them know their love. I guess the best we can do right now is give them all the respect they obviously deserve. I don't think a day or two of grace will keep us, or the families, from asking the questions that need answers.

But we pretty much know the worst; I don't think it's inappropriate to take a pause here to remember these good men.

Just my two cents worth....

enigma4ever said...

Mel- your two cents is always profoundly appreciated. I think I know what the Anony above was saying...and I think everyone here shares his/hers concerns, and that the families deserve to grieve...and in a respectful manner....

( But also when the cameras are gone and the emptiness hits we need to also keep them in our thoughts, because then the absolute horror will hit...there still needs to be a spotlight on this company - they have posted nothing on their website- nothing about the miners, the explosion, Nothing, nothing about services for the families, this is very important to keep an eye on, this is how companies get away with crimes.....and I keep mentioning it because it leaves huge questions about taking care of 13 families in a small town...but this little hollow of 418 people is apt to be left in the cold, if the Mine Co. just walks away from the situation, and the company has not acted in good faith so far, and I am sorry to say, having people like us watch from the outside and ask questions is still important...and a month from now may sadly be critical...
Some other time I will tell about living near a pipeline explosion and how the devastated town was treated...some of the early symptoms are concerning in this situation.
(1) the company waited almost two hours to call 911
(2) They lied about the deathes, but sent police up to the church
(3) They waited over three hours to tell the truth
(4) But then they left the bodies down there until the next day
(5) They did not give out the truth as they should have- the carbon monoxide reading 300ppm, the families should have known the truth about that, it would have prevented the emotional roller coaster the company sent them on.
(6) The company had 263 violations, and shut down orders on 3 occasions of different parts of the mines in last three monthes, and nothing has been stated publicly about mines being open or closed by the company , and the FEDS have taken over, this means something is Wrong.
(7) I hate to say this but the Company is counting on the people to grieve, and not ask questions while in their despair.
(8) And sadly yes, I have lived through such a company doing such things, and I will continue to send prayers and support to these people, but I also know in my heart that there will have to be bigger forces in place to determine what happens next in this situation rife with Negligence....These families will need Good lawyers to look out for their best interests, and protect their futures....Because we all know that the government and the company will not take care of these families or this small town. Because if the mine is forced to close , they should compensate the entire town, because it will cause hardship for so many families.
It is hard to have insight and foresight in such a tragic situation, but sometimes it is necessary.
I can pray for these folks, but I can also write letters to Senator Byrd and their Governor on their behalf....as an American..just as I did for the Katrina folks....and I can blog on the issues...that is all I can do..and keep this blog open for grief, dialogue....

meldonna said...

I know what you're saying, my friend...and trust me, we'll do everything we can to resolve.

peace

enigma4ever said...

Dear Monica- thank you for sharing your thoughts and wisdom about this area....and the fact that you still check on your roots says alot about the strength of the area, ties that run deep. I do hope the Media starts to focus on the Company- and it's responisibilities to the people of this region.And I also agree with you that the miner's families and community need privacy while they hold funerals and grieve....

enigma4ever said...

Kathleen M, I first have to say that I appreciate you took the time to comment, but sadly I have to delete your comment. Your comment is insensitive and judgemental, and inappropriate at this time and on this blog. If you read what you wrote-carefully, you will see it was written callously and without heart. You called these people living a hard life in the Hollows names (delusional),and say that they are not Reality based. Coal miner families live knowing their men are under the ground and their fates in the bowels of the earth. They also know that the Mines can be cruel. That is their reality. Do they have strong faith ? Yes ,they do , they have to, but they should not be judged because of that. They also were not allowed to meet at the Mines after the disaster ( that is the normal ritual), The Company set the NEW rules on this disaster, the people went to the closest church, and the command center was at another location, and the media was ordered to another peripheral location. Did the three seperate locations set up communication problems, probally. The Execs did lie to the people, they came to the Church at 11:30pm and told the waiting families that the miners would be brought there. But they didn't have the guts to come back at 12:15am and tell them the Truth.But they sent the police up at 2am before they went to tell the people, so that Control would be in place. And they left the miners down in the mines over night. If it were your loved one would you want your loved one left down there? I wouldn't. The Company should not be mollycoddled or "excused", they have behaved in a Criminal Manner. And people that are suffering and have been lied to need our prayers and support....

enigma4ever said...

UPDATE AND CORRECTION: 1-7-06
I had posted that Mr.Hatfield had said that the mines had tested at 300ppm, on day one that they were able to test the mines shaft. Actually according to MSHA and Wikipedia the original tests were over 1400ppm ( which is nearly 4 times what a human can tolerate- 300ppm, I need to check on tolerated levels- because 300 is too high without oxygen or protection).

I will be updating this this weekend about past injury rates etc....but I wanted to correct my error...

NEWSGUY said...

I would hope the United Mine Workers could get in there an organize the Sago miners. I think it is significant that this was a non-union mine.

The unions have had a lot to do with building this country and building the middle class and keeping people safe on the job. Ronnie Reagan came along and made it respectable to trash unions.

It has always been hard for workers to organize, due to the lopsided laws governing organizing. But we have to fight to have our say in the workplace. It is never easy. Sometimes it is near impossible.

But I think a union could have helped make Sago safer, and maybe averted this tragedy all toghther. Heaven knows the MHSA isn't doing its job under this administration full of cronies and lobbyists for industry.

Lily said...

Good comments, newsguy

jurassicpork said...

I blogged on tnhis a few days ago. It was mostly a lambasting of the MSM for getting it wrong. I took some hits for that but you cannot deny that the media really dropped the ball on this one.

Btw, you can send me that first chapter.

enigma4ever said...

Newsguy, thanks for your comments, and yes I hope the Miners Union does get in, I think from what I read they were in before, or in the area...but the new owners are only there for two monthes, and the other company went through financial hardhsip- it was not a happy takeover...The Mine remains closed for now,and when and if the Mine will reopen is questionable) and you are right waiting for MSHA would be waste of energy and time.I am rooting for the lawyers to come and sue for the families. Anderson Cooper did a pretty good CNN Presents this weekend...( and it appears that the Media is leaving the families alone to greive and have funerals...)

Lily- yes, Newsguy is dead on...smart guy...
Goth - it is sad...very sad...

JP...I think folks are starting to realize that it is not just MSM that got things wrong, that there were enough problems to go around on alot of levels, And I still say that the Company muzzled and strangled any relelvant coverage, and that setting up three SEPERATE locations was part of their control of information, and it took the focus off them, and STILL the company needs alot more scrutiny, although ABC did shine on some of the safety highlights....
About the book, Silent Fallout is on my blogroll and the Intro has been up for awhile...anyone is welcome to click on it...( name of town is changed to Poisonville - for now.)
I will be updating blog tomorrow night....

meldonna said...

The media has been covering the funerals from a distance.

There are three more scheduled for Tuesday.

One family's memorial is pending.

I say thursday is the appropriate time. Like Katrina, they cain't just brush this aside.

Being outside the immediate community, we may have some political pull. Mine regs have always been writ in blood...lets make it worthwhile.

You up for this?

enigma4ever said...

I took a few days to step back and also to let the families greive, watch the media try to repair damage, and watch the Govt/ regulators attempt to pretend that we still have infrastructure ( ie FEMAnize the situation), and see if Bushco would sweep under the Rugs Of Destraction....
and yes, after funerals are over I think some pointed Blogging could be effective...( VERY)
In the Meantime-
Lilly is covering great issues over at her blog, Newsguy is also covering key pieces, and so is Orwell's Grave.....
also be sure to read Mother Jones Blog on this...

enigma4ever said...

One more quick reminder, FireDoglake - Reddhead has written apost about the Miners and their lives and the impact...it was posted on Saturday and I will try to get link and title- but it was very moving and inspiring....