Year of Mine Explosions, Too?

Serial No  1,538. If any posts are blocked in your country, please drop us a line.

25 Miners Killed, 4 unaccounted for after coal mine explosion in Montcoal, West Virginia

If there was a direct relationship between the number of mine explosions and the amount of coal consumed globally, and there is, then 2010 should be regarded as worst year for mine blasts, so far.

The more coal dug  out, the more danger posed to the environment and individuals, especially those in the front lines.

At least 25 miners have been killed and 4 others are missing after an underground explosion caused the collapse of a Montcoal, West Virginia coal mine roof on Monday.

Massey Energy’s Mining Locations. Source Massey Energy. Image may be subject to copyright.

The explosion occurred at the Upper Big Branch Mine, about 50 km  (30 miles) south of Charleston, West Virginia, owned by Massey Energy’s subsidiary Performance Coal Co., officials were reported as saying.

A number of miners were also said to have received injuries, but no further details were available as of posting.

Massey Energy produced about 36.7 million tons of coal in 2009, with sales of about $2.32 billion, according to the company’s news release.

Company President Baxter Phillips said they had 2.3 billion tons of coal where that came from.

Massey Energy’s local Mountain Top Removal operation closest to Performance Coal Co., Raleigh County, West Virginia. Source Google.

Denuded areas are Massey Energy’s partial footprint in West Virginia. Click images to enlarge.

The deadliest mining disaster in the United States occurred also in West Virginia, when a mine explosion killed 362 people near Monongah, in 1907.

Since 1970, at least 150 people been killed in recorded mining incidents in the United States.

Here’s the formula once again:

More Coal = More Mine Explosions + More Climate Chaos + More Environmental Disasters + More Deaths

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