A trail of errors on fate of miners

SAGO, W.Va. -- A tearful mining company president took responsibility yesterday for a series of mistakes and delays in communication that allowed families of 13 trapped miners to believe that 12 of them had been rescued, only to find out hours later that all but one were dead.

A misspoken or misheard message from rescuers deep in the mine, to those waiting in a command center above, apparently led to the mistake. People at the scene immediately called anxious families gathered in Sago Baptist Church by cellphones, according to mining company officials.

''They were looking desperately for good information," Ben Hatfield, president of International Coal Group Inc., said of the people who spread the mistaken story. ''These are friends, family of the people that are trapped. There was desperation for good information. They wanted to share it."

''I don't think anyone had a clue how much damage was about to be created," Hatfield added, choking back tears. ''And we truly regret that."

All evening, those close to 12 of the miners, who had been trapped 260 feet below the surface after an explosion early Monday morning, had prayed for a miracle. They had hoped the miners would escape the fate of a 13th miner, who had been found dead earlier in the evening. Shortly before midnight, the church bells rang, celebrating the stunning news that a dozen miners might have been found alive.

But between 2:30 and 3 a.m., relatives in the church learned the awful truth: Just one man had survived, and he was in critical condition. Some in the crowd lunged at company officials and had to be restrained by other mourners.

''Liar! Hypocrites!" family members yelled at mining company officials after they received the news.

''It just knocks the air out of you. I just stood against the wall and said, 'No, no, no,' " said Diana George, a Red Cross volunteer who was in the church when the horrifying news was announced.

Some said that when the state's governor, a senator, and a congresswoman had all publicly cheered the ''miracle," the relatives were sure that they had been spared the worst news.

Family members of the dead miners, whose bodies were removed from the mine late yesterday morning, remained furious, questioning the safety of the mine and the honesty of the company officials who run it.

''They better close it down. It's unsafe. It's unfit. My God, 12 men lost their lives," said Ann Meredith, whose father, Jim Bennett, died in the disaster.

Governor Joe Manchin III, overcome with emotion, called the sequence of events ''heart-wrenching." Hatfield was blunt as he mourned both the loss of the miners and the added pain suffered by the family members. ''Welcome to the worst day of my life," he said yesterday.

The nearby town of Buckhannon, where a makeshift morgue was set up, mourned the losses yesterday, as local communities prepared for 12 funerals. Schools were closed, and flags were flown at half-staff. Businesses that had posted signs saying ''Pray for Our Miners" earlier in the week carried signs yesterday saying ''Pray for Our Miners' Families" -- a sad acknowledgment of the change in fortune.

The mine itself also remained closed, although Hatfield said it would reopen for business after company officials have determined what went wrong. He said he did not know the miners' cause of death, but said they had forged ''a rough attempt at a barricade" by stretching a ventilator cloth along the open side of a three-sided area, clearly hoping to breathe good air as long as possible.

The men who died were ''skilled miners, wonderful fathers, husbands, and sons," said Hatfield, noting that the men knew how to protect themselves.

The only miner to have survived the ordeal, Randal McCloy Jr., was recovering yesterday at West Virginia University's Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, where his condition was described by a doctor as ''critical but guarded," with his vital signs stable.

Dr. Lawrence Roberts said McCloy seemed to be recovering from a collapsed lung, and said his kidneys were being treated after they had shut down due to dehydration while he was trapped. Roberts contended that McCloy's good health and youth -- he is 27 -- probably contributed to his survival, and said he might be released from the hospital in about 10 days.

''In most respects, we think he's making progress," Roberts told reporters at a news conference.

Much of the emotional, 44-hour drama played out inside Sago Baptist Church, where about 250 family members of the miners gathered.

Hopeful at first, the families on Tuesday became increasingly somber, as mine officials relayed to them that the tiny microphones that had been dropped through newly drilled holes were not picking up signs of life. The news that one man had been found dead produced a combination of fear and optimism: A man was dead, but the other 12 were nowhere near him, leading to speculation that they had indeed survived.

Exhausted by the ordeal, family members cried, prayed, and fainted as they awaited news from officials. Manchin -- who had himself lost an uncle in a mine accident in 1968 -- visited the families, but had no information to offer beyond the discovery of the dead man.

At about 11:45 p.m., company and federal and state officials who were at the mine up the road from the church heard ''Twelve Alive!" from rescuers inside. This provoked a jubilation so pronounced that those in the command center asked all those who were not directly involved in the recovery effort to leave the area.

Down a muddy road from the mine, family members raced out of the church, screaming with happiness and thanking God for saving their loved ones. Some called family members in towns a half-hour away, letting them know they could go to bed secure in the knowledge that a dozen miners were alive.

Manchin cheered the rescue, leading family members and media outlets to believe he was giving official confirmation of the rescue.

A rumor spread that the survivors would be brought to the church to see their families.

But Manchin said early yesterday that he had never gotten personal confirmation of the alleged rescue.

George, the Red Cross worker waiting with the families in the church, said she became suspicious at the suggestion of a visit by survivors; she knew that even survivors who appeared well would almost certainly be taken to the hospital first. When just one ambulance left the mine for the hospital, George grew more concerned.

By 12:30, the bad news started to emerge at the mine command center, as officials were told of ''the" survivor, who was resuscitated on the scene, carried to a mine vehicle, and transported to the surface. Still, the officials above ground held out hope that the information was erroneous and that other survivors might be found -- and they decided not to communicate the news to the families until they were sure.

A message to clergy that the news of 12 rescues was perhaps untrue was apparently not immediately communicated to the families, Hatfield said yesterday.

Between 2 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. -- as family members were still celebrating -- government officials and mine executives got the final word: Eleven more were dead. Hatfield and other officials went to the church to tell the families.

Hatfield said yesterday that he should have told the families much earlier that the news of a possible rescue was inconclusive. He said he wanted to wait until he had definite word.

Federal and state agencies are investigating the explosion, but Hatfield rebutted allegations that the mine was unsafe. The mine has received 208 citations for various safety violations over the past year. Some local residents said the mine -- which employs about 145 people -- should close, while others said the facility should reopen if no wrongdoing is found.

''It gives people jobs, but it's a very dangerous job, and there will always be accidents," said Annie Bailey, a 21-year-old student whose grandfather had once worked in the mine.

Fred Woody, a retired glass worker, agreed.

''It's a dangerous job," he said. ''They make good money, but I wouldn't go in there for all the money in the world."