Remains of Lost Coal Miner Found in Flooded West Virginia Mine, Governor Announces
Rescue crews have located the remains of the mine worker who had been unaccounted for after a WV mine was inundated with water on the weekend, according to the governor on the fourth day.
The body was found inside the mine site near Belva, approximately 50 miles to the east of the state capital of the capital.
Information of the Incident
A mining crew had encountered an unknown pocket of water last weekend about 1.2 kilometers into the mine, which filled with water after an historic barrier “was compromised”, officials said. Over twelve other miners were accounted for after the accident was notified.
Previous Deaths at Company Sites
This death marks the third incident at a mining facility in West Virginia this year. The previous two occurred in nearby Raleigh county: a case in August when an elevator being tested hit a worker on a ground-level area, and another in the second month when a mineral layer fell on a subcontracted employee at a separate location.
Rescue Operation Efforts
Boreholes were created in the underground area in an effort to speed up the search process, and underwater specialists searched possible locations in the water where pockets of air might be present. Specialized communication equipment were supplied to enable better subsurface contact over long ranges.
About the Mine
The Rolling Thunder is among eleven subsurface operations operated in the state by the headquartered in Tennessee corporation. The business also operates four surface mines in the region, as well as other mining locations in neighboring Virginia.
The governor said that the abandoned mine adjacent to Rolling Thunder had been in use during the 1930s and 1940s.
Consultant Assessment
A report prepared in February for the operator by an technical advisory group indicated that the area had been “extensively explored” by previous mine owners, generating “a significant amount of historical data” that was examined in assessing its potential for producing coal.
The identical document notes that the mineral deposit runs parallel to and beneath the drainage of a nearby creek, but said there were “no significant hydrologic concerns” affecting extraction activities.
