TALLMANSVILLE, W.Va. – The men trapped inside the Sago Mine tried to bulldoze their way out in a mine car before following their training and barricading themselves behind a makeshift protective curtain, according to the family of the disaster’s sole survivor.
By the time rescue workers reached the 12 trapped miners more than 41 hours after an explosion, all but one had died of carbon monoxide poisoning.
Rick McGee, the brother-in-law of survivor Randal McCloy Jr., said Tuesday that International Coal Group Inc. chief executive Ben Hatfield told the family the miners apparently tried to use the same mechanized mine car they rode into the mine to force their way out, but debris blocked their path.
“They found footprints,” said McGee. The men “tried to go back out of the mine. This ain’t hearsay. This came from Hatfield’s mouth.”
Lara Ramsburg, a spokeswoman for Gov. Joe Manchin, said Tuesday that it’s also the state’s understanding the men tried to escape.
“They couldn’t get that accomplished…” Ramsburg said. “They then, being trained, turned around and went back to the face, where they barricaded themselves.”
In a mine, the “face” is where miners are removing coal.
Hatfield did not return repeated requests for comment Tuesday about whether the miners made an escape effort. In a statement issued to the Associated Press, he said it was probable the miners believed a fire or debris from the explosion was blocking their path.
In an interview with USA Today published Tuesday, Hatfield said if the trapped miners had wireless communication devices, it would have been possible to tell them of a safe way out. The only method of communication at Sago, a wired phone, was destroyed in the blast.
Hatfield told USA Today his company would consider issuing miners radios.
McCloy remains in critical condition, in a partial coma and still fighting a fever. His doctors at West Virginia University’s Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown said Tuesday that tests showed a lot of activity on both sides of McCloy’s brain.
“It is probably too early for us to tell what that means, but it is very important to us that he has a lot of brain activity,” said Dr. Julian Bailes.
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