Trapped Miners Rescued in Mingo County
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Updated: 12:09 PM May 11, 2009
Trapped Miners Rescued in Mingo County
The seven miners were trapped inside the Mountaineer Alma A Mine in Gilbert since 10 p.m. Friday due to high water on the man-trip road. WSAZ EXCLUSIVE: Watch our unedited interviews with the rescued coal miners and some family members.
Posted: 3:40 PM May 9, 2009
Reporter: Amanda Barren
Email Address: Amanda.Barren@wsaz.com
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GILBERT, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- His son turned four years old Saturday.

But, Randy Atwood didn't make the party. He was stuck at work.

Randy spent 32 hours with six other miners trapped inside a coal mine in Gilbert, West Virginia. Due to a combination of heavy rains that pounded southern West Virginia and a malfunction of a pipe to clear that water, a dip in the man-trip road filled with water and made the road impassable.

So, Randy grabbed a piece of coal and started making his son a present.

"I got a bit bored and started carving coal," Randy Atwood said while showing WSAZ.com the miner's hat he fashioned out of a chunk of coal. His wife said they still spoke with him five or six times Saturday.

Boredom appears to be the biggest enemy of the seven trapped miners inside the Mountaineer Alma A Mine in Mingo County.

"We knew we was coming out," Coal Miner John Dillon said. "It wasn't life threatening to us."

State and federal agencies joined the rescue effort Saturday to pump water out of the mine. The seven miners had been trapped since 10 p.m. Friday when they went to work the third shift at the site. 32 hours later, the water cleared enough for the miners to walk out and board a bus back to the company's main office, where a group of family members and fellow coal miners gathered to wait for their loved ones.

"When they got off the bus. I'm telling you it was just God's grace," the aunt of one of the miners told WSAZ.com.

"Give my family a big hug," Coal Miner Wayne Kennedy said about his first priority when he got home to see his wife and two children Sunday.

According to spokespeople at the state and federal agencies, all the miners appear to be fine.

Dispatchers and state officials told WSAZ.com that the miners were never in any danger. The miners said they went to the highest part of the mine and waited for word they could come out.

WSAZ reporters Amanda Barren and Andrew Colegrove were outside the mine throughout the evening. Amanda Barren reports seeing an ambulance enter the mine site shortly after 6 a.m. Sunday. A short time after that, the state and MSHA reported the miners were able to walk out of the mine. An employee from MSHA told Barren the difficulty was getting the water pumped to a level in which the miners were able to walk out on their own. A spokesperson for the state said the air quality in the mine was good.

WSAZ.com spoke with David Dillon late Saturday, who told us his brother John was one of the miners stuck inside the mine. He said he spoke with his brother twice Saturday.

"He just said he's not around no water right now and that he's okay. That's the only thing he's really told me," David Dillon said.

After his rescue, WSAZ.com spoke with John Dillon, who told us he slept most of the time. The miners also passed time by just talking.

"You'd think we hate each other, but deep down we have nothing but love and respect for each other," John Dillon said. "We kept our spirits up though."

His mother, who had gone to the site earlier Saturday to wait on word, noted the significance of the Sunday rescue.

"Best Mother's Day present ever."

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Latest Comments

Posted by: Kimberly on May 12, 2009 at 09:30 AM

Much to be thankful for! My Brother-in-Law is the Foreman for this blessed group of men. My sister called me to let me know that all is well and safe. We are military stationed in Naples Italy. Thank you for these postings...they make me feel closer to home :-)
Posted by: randal on May 12, 2009 at 12:22 AM

Im glad they are all ok.. I used to work with Randy Attwood in nc.. If anyone talks to him have him contact me at randalltalbert@aol.com Thanks.. Id really like to chat with him for its been a couple years since Ive worked with him and lost contact..
Posted by: Candace Cantrell on May 11, 2009 at 06:16 PM

I am the wife of the foreman underground that night. He wants to thank everyone for the prayers they sent and to every man that helped getting them out. As a wife I want to give thanks to the this company for EVERYTING they did. Letting us talk to our loved ones was very comforting and coming down every 2 hours assuring us they were doing everything possible. Thanks to everyone!!!!
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