All 72 Trapped Canadian Miners Rescued
In Good Health After Fire In Mine Early Sunday Trapped Them Underground
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Play CBS Video Video 72 Canadian Miners Rescued All 72 people trapped in a Canadian mine have been rescued. Aleen Sirgany reports that a fire broke out early Sunday in the gas pipelines of the Saskatchewan mines and spread toxic gas.
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Mosaic Company Postash Mine after fire broke out, near Esterhazy, Saskatchewan. Video still, Jan. 30, 2006. (AP /APTN)
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Mosaic Company spokesman Marshall Hamilton speaks with reporters about the condition of the miners trapped underground near Esterhazy, Canada, on Sunday Jan. 29, 2006. (AP)
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The K2 Postash Mine site near Esterhazy, Saskatchewan, seen here after fire broke out at the mine, Jan. 29, 2006. (AP/Troy Fleece/CP)
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West Virginia Gov Joe Manchin hands out copies of the mine safety bill as sons and wife of mine fire victim Don Bragg look on during at the State Capitol, Thursday Jan. 26, 2006. (AP)
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Randal McCloy, seen here in a 2003 photo provided by his family, is able to respond to simple commands and follow movements with his eyes, Dr. Larry Roberts said. (AP)
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Photo Essay Mine Fire Anxious families and friends gather as disaster once again strikes a coal mine in West Virginia.
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Interactive Mine Tragedy Here is a closer look at the miners who perished in West Virginia and the people who are mourning them.
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Photo Essay Mine Explosion Tragedy unfolds after a coal mine explosion in Tallmansville, West Virginia.
Within two hours, rescue teams were mobilized, each going into the mine for a few hours at a time.
Hamilton said some of the miners' families had gathered at the mine.
Rob Dyck, one of the members of the rescue team, said the fire created a lot of smoke.
"It was hot, dusty, but our training came through," Dyck said. "We've been in smoke before, but probably nothing this complicated."
The mine, which was Saskatchewan's first potash operation when it opened in 1962, is located about 130 miles northeast of the provincial capital of Regina.
Potash is a pinkish-grey mineral used in the production of agricultural fertilizer.
The drama in Canada unfolded Sunday as yet another miner's funeral was held in West Virginia, this last ceremony for Don I. "Rizzle" Bragg, 33, who was killed with Ellery "Elvis" Hatfield, 47, as a result of a belt line fire in the Aracoma Alma No. 1 coal mine on Jan. 19th.
That tragedy followed on the heels of a coal mine accident in Pikeville, Ky., on Jan. 10th, which killed one man, and the Sago Mine disaster in West Virginia on Jan. 2nd, which killed 12 men.
The deaths galvanized state legislators in West Virginia, who passed new mine safety rules signed into law Thursday by Gov. Joe Manchin. The bill will provide miners with emergency communicators and tracking devices, extra air supplies underground, and to require mining companies to report accidents within 15 minutes or face heavy fines.
Sunday, the family of Randal McCloy - the sole survivor of the Sago disaster, who is still in the hospital – along with the relatives of the other Sago victims received money from a benefit fund set up by ICG of Ashland, Ky., the owner of the Sago mine.
"We realize that no amount of money can take the place of a loved one, but we understand that you do have financial needs," the company said in a letter that accompanied the money. "We hope that this will help provide assistance as you plan for the future."
©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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