12 Trapped Miners in West Virginia discussion

[nychief]

Grief, anger as all but one miner found dead
Initial reports indicated 12 had survived

Wednesday, January 4, 2006; Posted: 10:25 a.m. EST (15:25 GMT)
TALLMANSVILLE, West Virginia (CNN) -- For three hours overnight, families of a dozen trapped West Virginia miners thought their loved ones were coming home as church bells rang to welcome them.

But by 3 a.m. Wednesday -- as one critically ill survivor was rushed to a hospital -- families learned that their thankful jubilation was premature.

There had been a tragic "miscommunication," said mine company chief Ben Hatfield. Twelve of the 13 trapped miners had not made it. They were dead. (Watch angry relatives react -- 3:21)

Anna Casto, who lost her cousin, angrily disagreed with Hatfield's use of the term "miscommunication."

"No, he strictly told us they was alive," Casto said. "Three hours later he come back and said they wasn't."

"We want to know why, and how people can get by with this," she said.

"I just want that immediate family to get some kind of satisfaction, to get some kind of answers." (Full story)

Casto said the tragedy has shaken the faith of some in the community. "We have got some of us ... saying... that we don't even know if there is a Lord anymore," she said. "We had a miracle, and it was taken away from us."
3-hour delay

# 11:53 p.m. -- Church bells ring as reports first indicate that 12 miners have been found alive.

# 2:14 a.m. -- A man is rescued and taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition after being trapped underground for nearly 40 hours.

# 2:44 a.m. -- Miners' relatives say they had been told all but one of the miners were dead.

# 3:11 a.m. -- Hatfield, president and CEO of International Coal Group, which owns the Sago Mine, announces that despite previous reports, only one survivor was found in the mine. (Timeline)

Hatfield called it the "worst day of my life."
Critical condition

The sole survivor, Randal McCloy, 27, was in critical condition in intensive care Wednesday at Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown.

"He suffered some collapse of one of his lungs," said Dr. Larry Roberts. "And we're trying to reopen that and there's good progress there."

Roberts said McCloy was sedated and attached to a breathing tube, but was moving and responding to stimuli.

"We hope that we will try to awaken him later today or tomorrow," the doctor said.
'Who do we tell?'

Hatfield said he knew within 20 minutes that an error had been made and that not all 12 were alive, but said he did not inform jubilant family members.

"We couldn't correct the information without knowing more about it," he told reporters. "Let's put this in perspective -- who do we tell not to celebrate? All I knew is, there weren't 12 people that were alive. It was somewhere between 12 and zero."

Hatfield said he understood family members' anger.

"I'm not surprised or upset with them. They certainly have some basis for their frustration, having been put through this emotional roller-coaster. I wouldn't wish that on anyone."

Hatfield said the miscommunication occurred between rescue crews and the command center, causing the earlier erroneous reports. (Watch the CEO's grim announcement -- 9:00)
Miners were alive after accident

Hatfield said it was apparent that the miners, who were found 13,000 feet into the mine, remained alive for a period of time following the explosion. They had built a "rough barricade structure," he said, and had donned their self-contained breathing apparatuses. The apparatuses held one hour of oxygen; Hatfield said he had no way of knowing how long the miners were alive.

The rescue team that found the miners was speaking to the command center over mine communication system on an open speaker audible to a number of people, Hatfield said. He noted the company made no formal announcement that the 12 were alive, but said he would not single out any rescuers, as they were trying to save the miners' lives.

"The honest answer is, we were devastated," he said. "It's sorrow beyond belief ... Welcome to the worst day of my life."
'Some wrong communications'

West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin -- who flashed a thumbs-up on the steps of the church and said, "believe in miracles," after hearing the initial report that the 12 were alive -- called the situation "heart-wrenching." (Watch Gov. Manchin explain what may have caused the miscommunication -- 3:44)

He said he was in another room of the church with some family members when "we heard families in a euphoric state, and all the shouting and screaming and joyfulness." He asked what was happening, he said, and was told, "They found them. They're alive."

Manchin said he asked his communications people if they had confirmed that information, and they said no. But he was caught in the sea of jubilant relatives streaming out of the church, and the church bells began ringing, he said. He said he was "in a euphoric state, the same as they are."

It was about 20 minutes later, he said, when he also became aware of "some wrong communications." The delay in informing relatives, he said, came because officials were trying to get accurate information instead of adding to the confusion. He said he understood the family's pain, as his own uncle died in a 1968 mine accident.

"To put blame on anybody -- it's the wrong time, the wrong place," Manchin said. "Everybody has worked so hard. The rescue teams have worked around the clock. They've come from all over the country."

[memyselfI]

According to AP:

But late Tuesday night, families began streaming out of the church, yelling "They're alive!" The church's bells began ringing and families embraced, as politicians proclaimed word of the apparent rescue a miracle.

As an ambulance drove away from the mine carrying what families believed was the first survivor, they applauded, not yet knowing there were no others.

Though the governor announced that there were 12 survivors, he later indicated he was uncertain about the news. As word buzzed through the church of survivors, he tried to find out what was going on, he said.


A Terrible Mistake

"All of a sudden we heard the families in a euphoric state, and all the shouting and screaming and joyfulness, and I asked my detachments, I said, 'Do you know what's happening?' Because we were wired in and we didn't know," Manchin said.

International Coal Group Chief Executive Officer Ben Hatfield blamed the wrong information on a "miscommunication." The news spread after people overheard cell phone calls, he said. In reality, rescuers had only confirmed finding 12 miners and were checking their vital signs. At least two family members in the church said they received cell phone calls from a mine foreman.

"That information spread like wildfire, because it had come from the command center," he said.

Three hours later, Hatfield told the families that "there had been a lack of communication, that what we were told was wrong and that only one survived," said John Groves, whose brother Jerry Groves was one of the trapped miners.

"There was no apology. There was no nothing. It was immediately out the door," said Nick Helms, son of miner Terry Helms.

Chaos broke out in the church and a fight started. About a dozen state troopers and a SWAT team were positioned along the road near the church because police were concerned about violence. Witnesses said one man had to be wrestled to the ground when he lunged for mining officials.

[memyselfI]

And the BBC:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4580388.stm

How did the mine message spread?

Various accounts have started to emerge of the communications failings which led families of 11 US miners found dead to believe their loved ones were alive.
Relatives say the devastating news that only one of the West Virginia miners had survived came about three hours after they had been told 12 were alive.

The mining company said it knew within 20 minutes that initial reports of 12 survivors were incorrect, but said it was not clear at that stage how many were dead.

Inquiries are under way to find out how the wrong information was given out, as investigators await rescuers' accounts.

The tragedy raises two key questions: was the rescue team misunderstood or wrong, and why did it take so long for the families to be told?



FAMILY
Families say they were told by a company foreman that the men had been found alive.


They say they had been rejoicing for nearly three hours when they were told 11 of the 12 had not survived.


In graphics: How tragedy unfolded
Relatives want to know why officials from the mining company had waited before they broke the news.

There is intense fury.

"I feel that we were lied to all along," said Anne Meredith, whose father died in the incident.

Nick Helms, a relative of one of the miners said: "They said it was miscommunication, come on. You come in and you tell all these people that have been waiting here you've got 12 guys coming out. There is no miscommunication."


WEST VIRGINIA GOVERNOR JOE MANCHIN
Governor Joe Manchin said the tragic news came more than three hours after he had been that told 12 survived the disaster.

But he said his communications team have never received confirmation that there had been survivors.

"I was with the families when all of a sudden I heard... a lot of the families start clapping and screaming, and my people, my communications people, had heard nothing and there was no confirmation."


INTERNATIONAL COAL GROUP (ICG)
ICG President Ben Hatfield said initial news that the 12 men had been found alive was "bad information".

He sought to explain how the misunderstanding occurred.

"There was a miscommunication and I don't know really know whose end it was, but there was a miscommunication, that resulted in the command centre believing they were told that there [were] 12 survivors," he said.

"And apparently the intention on the part of the rescue teams was to confirm that they had 12 individuals and they were at that point checking vital signs, trying to determine who was a survivor and who wasn't."

The information was "an incomplete evaluation at the point that it went to the command centre", he said.

"[T]hrough stray cellphone conversations it appears that this miscommunication from the rescue team underground to the command centre was picked up by various people... was relayed through cellphone communications without our ever having made a release," he added.

The company stressed it had never confirmed all 12 men were alive.

"But that information spread like wildfire because it had come from the command centre, but it was a bad information," he said.

Mr Hatfield said that the company had waited until it could determine which of the miners were dead or alive to tell the families their fate.

[jAZ]

Originally Posted by Donger

...I find it amazing that after that amount of time, you could say something like "I've lost any sympathy I had" for the relatives.

You are pathetic. God forbid you quote me accurrately or even take those words in context.

Originally Posted by jAZ

It was frustrating to watch because I really lost sympathy for them as a result of the interview. They weren't hearing the details though their outrage. That's understable, but it also pissed me off that the CNN guy seemed to try and feed that outrage rather than try to clarify the details and bring down their (misplaced) anger.

It's a crappy situation and I imagine that all the people involved are victim to some crappy circumstances. Obviously the families end up suffering the most, by far.

You are a fraud Donger.

[jAZ]

Originally Posted by Donger

Me thinks jAZ doth protest too much.

You smeared yourself.

You project nicely.

[Donger]

Originally Posted by jAZ

I really lost sympathy for them as a result of the interview.

And you're a callous asshole, jAZ.

[memyselfI]

Originally Posted by jAZ

Yep, they (CNN) also seemed to fuel the outraged of the greiving families with misinformation.

The media is responsible for their own behavior. While the source of all of the misinformation is in fact what appears to be an honest mistake, that doesn't mean that the media behaved as they should have.

jAZ, normally you are spot on in your assessment but in this one you are just wrong.

A rescuer calls to notify someone and the conversation is overheard, a mine official then told the family members what he thought he heard, they begin to celebrate, the Gov.'s people confirm the information, the media reports it.

At which point in this sequence is the media supposed to say what they are seeing and hearing is not fact? Especially when PEOPLE IN THE KNOW WITHHELD THE TRUTH FOR THREE HOURS?

The media does more than it's share of crappy things and needs to be held accountable for them. But in this instance, they were hosed along with the families and everyone else wanting to believe the stories to be true.

You remain far out on a limb that even Rush Limbaugh, upon hearing details of the timeline, has climbed off of...

that is not a place I think you want to be.

[KC Dan]

Originally Posted by memyselfI

A rescuer calls to notify someone, a mine official then told the family members what he thought he heard, they begin to celebrate, the Gov.'s people confirm the information, the media reports.

At which point in this sequence is the media supposed to say what they are seeing and hearing is not fact? Especially when PEOPLE IN THE KNOW WITHHELD THE TRUTH FOR THREE HOURS?

How about when the media, whom are placed all over the rescue site, see live bodies come out not dead ones. God forbid we hold the media accountable........

[memyselfI]

Originally Posted by KC Dan

How about when the media, whom are placed all over the rescue site, see live bodies come out not dead ones. God forbid we hold the media accountable........

Sure, but then what do they report or describe about what they are seeing from the families in the church and being told by the GOV. office?

I'm sure there will be time for accountability and blame. But this haste to blame the media here has more to do with some people's own agendas vs. any real culpability based on the timeline.

[KC Dan]

Originally Posted by memyselfI

Sure, but then what do they report or describe about what they are seeing from the families in the church and being told by the GOV. office?

I'm sure there will be time for accountability and blame. But this haste to blame the media here has more to do with some people's own agendas vs. any real culpability based on the timeline.

Oh hell no! I do not just blame the media. I hope that the surviving family members can sue the living crap out of the mining company, the state and the media. They are all to blame for the misreporting of the fate of the miners. But, the mining company & state/federal inspectors are solely responsible for the mishap. I have no misgivings about who is to blame, I just refuse to give the lazy media a free pass.

[jAZ]

Originally Posted by memyselfI

jAZ, normally you are spot on in your assessment but in this one you are just wrong.

A rescuer calls to notify someone and the conversation is overheard, a mine official then told the family members what he thought he heard, they begin to celebrate, the Gov.'s people confirm the information, the media reports it.

At which point in this sequence is the media supposed to say what they are seeing and hearing is not fact? Especially when PEOPLE IN THE KNOW WITHHELD THE TRUTH FOR THREE HOURS?

The media does more than it's share of crappy things and needs to be held accountable for them. But in this instance, they were hosed along with the families and everyone else wanting to believe the stories to be true.

You remain far out on a limb that even Rush Limbaugh, upon hearing details of the timeline, has climbed off of...

that is not a place I think you want to be.

I understand your point and don't disagree with it in a broad sense, but the media could have and in this case should have reported "rumors are swirilling that 12 people are alive".

The live TV media could have and should have reported it as such. But they also face a smaller burder of accuracy in a sense as they are able to report what they are learning as they learn it. But they are responsible for reporting what they learned accurately. They need to qualify their reports appropriately.

The print media has an even higher burden, IMO because their printing schedule doesn't allow for getting it right once it goes to print. In that case, it is even more important to report the story accurately. And an accurate report would be (again) "unconfirmed reports suggest 12 found alive" or some such.

That doesn't make for a good news-paper selling headline though, so they punch it up a little in exchange for actual accuracy.

I am only holding the media accountable to the same standard that they are alway accountable for, IMO. Nothing additional.

I'm certainly not holding them responsible for the source information being false.

To give you a familiar parallel that might make some sense for you... IMO it's like the Dan Rather, Bush, Draft story.

I hold CBS and Dan Rather accountable for a failure in editorial judgement. They rushed a story and should have held themselve to a higher journalistic standard. Similarly I am not saying that Rather is responsible for any mis-information. His failure was in editorial control.

JMO.

[jAZ]

Originally Posted by Donger

And you're a callous asshole, jAZ.

This is exactly why you are a fraud. Hide context so that you can make your point. Nicely done.

[Donger]

Originally Posted by jAZ

This is exactly why you are a fraud. Hide context so that you can make your point. Nicely done.

Yeah, good luck with that.

Originally Posted by jAZ

It was frustrating to watch because I really lost sympathy for them as a result of the interview. They weren't hearing the details though their outrage. That's understable, but it also pissed me off that the CNN guy seemed to try and feed that outrage rather than try to clarify the details and bring down their (misplaced) anger.

It's a crappy situation and I imagine that all the people involved are victim to some crappy circumstances. Obviously the families end up suffering the most, by far.

You really see anything in there that does NOT show you to be a callous prick?

[jAZ]

Originally Posted by memyselfI

But this haste to blame the media here has more to do with some people's own agendas vs. any real culpability based on the timeline.

I don't know about Rush's agenda (well yes I do), but my agenda is one of greater accuracy and lesser sensationalism.

The media can report "unconfirmed reports of ...". Instead they dropped that portion of the report because it takes away much of the dramatic effect and great TV (or headlines).

Screw the ratings and the sales.

[jAZ]

Originally Posted by Donger

You really see anything in there that does NOT show you to be a callous prick?

Yeah, quite a bit.

[KC Dan]

Originally Posted by jAZ

I don't know about Rush's agenda (well yes I do), but my agenda is one of greater accurace and lesser sensationalism.

The media can report "unconfirmed reports of ...". Instead they dropped that portion of the report because it takes away much of the dramatic effect and great TV (or headlines).

Screw the ratings and the sales.

God, I agree with jAZ....
I feel dirty, like I just rooted for the Bronco's.......