Probes Under Way In Mine Tragedy
Investigations Into Why, How It Happened And Overall US Mine Safety
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Play CBS Video Video Honoring The Last Coal Miners The last two funerals for the men who died in a coal mine explosion in the Sago, W.Va., will be held today The lone survivor, Randal McCloy, is still in critical condition.
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Video A Miner's Life Only On The Web: West Virginia remembered three men who died as a result of a mine explosion. Randall Pinkston says the community will regroup and go back to their dangerous jobs.
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The casket of Sago miner Fred Ware, Jr. of Buckhannon, W.Va., is carried out of the Sago Baptist Church Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2006, lead by Ware's son Darrell Ware, far right, and son-in-law Aaron Cohen, second from right, in Tallmansville, W.Va. (AP Photo)
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Twelve black ribbons tied on the perimeter fence of the Sago Mine in Tallmansville, W.Va., Jan. 8, 2006. (AP)
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Doug Conaway, state director of miner's health, safety and training, speaks during a news conference, Jan. 9, 2006, in Charleston, W.Va. (AP)
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Photo Essay Vigil For Miners A community gathers together to light candles in remembrance of 12 miners.
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In The Spotlight West Virginia Mining Tragedy Video Coverage: Stunned West Virginia town where joy turned to despair after news of all, except one, trapped miners are dead.
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Photo Essay All Hope Lost Anguish besets a West Virginia town as 12 of 13 miners are found dead after an explosion.
Construction of ventilation shafts and other preparatory work could be completed as soon as Tuesday, allowing federal inspectors to get their first look at the scene of last Monday's explosion at the Sago mine, reports CBS News correspondent Randall Pinkston. Experts say the experts may be able to get an indication of the cause of the deadly blast.
Meanwhile, the funeral for 59-year-old Fred Ware was held at Sago Baptist Church in Tallmansville, followed by a pre-noon service for Terry Helms, 50, in Masontown. Funerals for the other 10 men killed were held Sunday and Monday.
Mourners came from as far away as New York for the morning service for Ware at Sago Baptist Church, the small church near the mine where families gathered to await word on the fate of the men trapped underground.
"As I talked to his miner friends, they'd say, 'You know, Fred was always worried about someone else getting hurt,"' the Rev. Wease Day said at the funeral for Ware, who was buried in a flannel shirt and a camouflage cap.
Among the issues to be probed will be the tragic miscommunication that led to the mistaken belief that 12 of the trapped miners had been rescued alive on Jan. 2.
"I am asking for that because I have witnessed firsthand the unbelievable human suffering that comes from miscommunication," Gov. Joe Manchin said Monday.
Communication with the miners is also an issue.
"In keeping with their training, the miners put up barriers to trap fresh air and wait for rescue. They didn't know that they were just 2,000 feet from fresh air and there was no way to tell them, because the phone system had been destroyed by the explosion," reports Pinkston.
Sago mine CEO Ben Hatfield tells USA Today that the coal mining industry has been slow to update its communication system. He is now considering installing a wireless system in mine tunnels, similar to the devices now being used in tunnels for automobiles and trucks.
The only miner who did survive, Randal McCloy, remains in critical condition. He's fighting a fever and undergoing dialysis.
©MMVI CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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