January 04, 2006

Newsfilter: 12 of 13 W.Va. Coal Miners Confirmed Dead , 3 hours after being told all had survived but one. Families, early last night rejoicing at the reported news that their loved ones were alive, are now mourning and outraged by the apparent "miscommunication" being blamed for their not being told sooner. Randal McCloy, the sole survivor, is in critical condition.
posted by art vandal 18 years ago
  • I can see it now "oops my bad, homie". Stupid and tragic.
  • Heard on the CBC this morning that there was a miscommunication between the rescue crew and the people coordinating the rescue effort, that 12 "individuals" were identified, and were being checked for vitals. Someone on the top got overexcited, and read information into that that wasn't there. Which is perhaps understandable, however unfortunate. However, it became clear after about twenty minutes that there was a huge mistake. Company honchos, knowing that people would be emotional wrecks as a result, decided to sit on that information for three hours, until they were extra extra certain, on the theory that they would be sparing the families more pain should things turn out differently later. Meaning that for at least two and a half hours, the suits let the people celebrate their loved ones while they knew (pretty much) that they were wrong to do so. Lawyer up! Gee-YAH!
  • This death is tragic and my heart goes out to these people and their loved ones: and this terrible "miscommunication" shouldn't distract us from the question: why did they die in the first place? I want you all to know that, before I make a stupid comment.
  • Here it is. Believe me people - this is just the tip of the fucking iceberg. The rumours doing the rounds at the moment say that these poor men actually died FOURTEEN YEARS before this "accident" - but those fucking Company honchos didn't tell their families - they just said that they were "working late". Then they took advantage of a myseterious "mine explosion" and told them that they died in that. FUCKING HONCHOS.
  • Did anyone else see the headline on USA Today and cringe? If you didn't, here it is.
  • I am still waiting for quid's stupid comment.
  • SUPERBUSH COULDA SAVED THEM!
  • Still not it...
  • Good news, everyone! All the miners are alive!!! Wait, wait- My bad- When I said "good" I actually meant to say "tragic" and when I said "alive" I actually meant "dead from slow suffocation". My bad! Have a great day, everyone! oops, there I go again, I meant "I'm so terribly sorry". Ha ha!
  • And by "Ha ha!" I meant "God bless you and your loved ones." See ya suckers!
  • Still not it... THEY DIED BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T USE MACS!
  • Getting closer...
  • Today at lunch I walked across a USA Today box - I glanced at the front page and did a double-take. The headline read "12 out of 13 coal miners alive" or something to that effect. I was so happy to hear that - now I see this and it makes me really pissed. First, I'm pissed at USA Today for making an unsubstantiated rumor front page news. Aren't these the same media outlets that whine and moan about the quality of news from bloggers? Second, I'm pissed because this will likely be remembered as a tragic "Dewey Defeats Truman" event in the nation's history that will haunt the friends and loved ones of these coal miners. (And hopefully the criminal fucks that allowed such unsafe working conditions in the first place...)
  • Well if that's not good enough for you bernockle, I'm leaving this site and going to MeFi, where they ALL call me a stupid turd.
  • Mickey - the front page I saw - in print form - was a screen shot from CNN, along with channel banner and everything. Just reinforces my opinion that USA Today is a useless shitrag. (Ok... time to put Mr. Angry back in the box...)
  • The rumours doing the rounds at the moment say that these poor men actually died FOURTEEN YEARS before this "accident" - but those fucking Company honchos didn't tell their families - they just said that they were "working late". Sweet overtime.
  • I will call you a stupid turd if you dance for me.
  • shouldn't distract us from the question: why did they die in the first place? There was a former MSHA examiner on NPR this morning saying that the mine has a shockingly bad safety record. It has evidently been shut down several times just in the past couple of years for major safety violations, including the handling of combustible materials and the production of noxious gases like CO. The short version is, this company is going to pay dearly for cutting corners on worker safety.
  • ............ Twelve for the fallen...
  • I have to opine that I couldn't give a damn about 12 blokes in a hole, given the other shit going on in the world. This is just another version of a missing white woman for the US media, frankly.
  • That's a good point. But this kind of story is long on drama and suspense. Will Baby Jessica come out all right, will she die, etc. TV eats this stuff up.
  • There was a former MSHA examiner on NPR this morning saying that the mine has a shockingly bad safety record. 208 violations in 2005. Fucking criminals.
  • I think the mine's managers may be following the Chinese example in more ways than one.
  • The Chinese example: In the first nine months of this year, 4,153 coal miners were killed...statistics from the State Administration of Work Safety show
  • This is one of those local stories gone national. Emotion and hope seem to run so high these days. My first take on this when I heard the initial stories weren't true was: Everyone got caught up in the idea that we can save our own. Too bad. It's almost the same sense I had when little Jessica fell down that well. Quidnunc and chyren, although I understand your perspective, please don't diminish the grief of family and friends by making fun of them. I know that many people die in inexcusable industrial accidents worldwide every year, but this is personal for them. I just hope that Americans in general can channel some of that fierce optimism, determination, fury, will, compassion and inwardness into a focused laser beam that might make a difference. It's worth hoping for, I think.
  • "..please don't diminish the grief of family and friends by making fun of them. I know that many people die in inexcusable industrial accidents worldwide every year, but this is personal for them." I'm not making fun of them. I just don't think it is significant, on a global scale. Let 'family & friends' talk about it in their community and local newspapers. It is irrelevant on an international, or even national scale, imho. How many fucking little kids got killed in Iraq this week? Do we hear about them on every channel on US tv for hours? "I just hope that Americans in general can channel some of that fierce optimism, determination, fury, will, compassion and inwardness into a focused laser beam that might make a difference." Huh? A difference to what? Create a laser beam of energy that resurrects dead miners? That last bit of stuff you wrote means *absolutely nothing at all* and is the kind of hideously empty jingoism reminiscent of cravenly facile media bullshit. I will focus my fierce cynicism, determination and intellect into a laser beam of sanity that will bring you into actual reality. Here goes. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzZZZZZZZZZ
  • Wow. OK, Chyren is channeling Helen Keller. He gets it. He has ESP. All I was saying is that it is appropriate to think about the frenzy of emotion here, an how it reflects on our times. If I am out of line, please specify.
  • Yes, Abeizer. I get that; but for some reason (our cultural insensitivity, our short attention span) we don't care.
  • Cultural insensitivity, not caring...we SHOULD care about our fellow man, but who, who, even bothers to help out the stranger anymore? How would we feel, fellow monkies, if one of our own were trapped, died, in that mine? How would we feel? Not too good. We're all stuck on this rock together, let's try to care for each other, even just a little bit.
  • In 1992, I was working for the company that owned the Westray Mine in Nova Scotia when it exploded, killing 26 miners. Some 11 years later, in 2003, Bill C45, called the "Westray Bill" was passed, ammending the Criminal Code to hold senior managers liable for negligence in workplace safety. One hopes that this recent disaster will have a similar effect in the US.
  • please don't diminish the grief of family and friends by making fun of them Firstly: they are probably not reading monkeyfilter, are they? Secondly: Fairly obviously, neither Chy nor I are mocking anyone. Thirdly: A clown (in full costume) walks into a church in order to spend a few minutes praying to Jesu the Clown. A funeral is being conducted, so he sits quietly in the back row. The ceremony is very moving, with many friends and family of the deceased giving heart-felt eulogies. Carried away by emotion, the clown decides to get up and say a few words too. He goes to the front of the Church and stands by the coffin. The congregation is somewhat taken aback - a clown, in full attire, at a funeral! - but they fall silent to hear what he will say. He looks at the (closed) coffin and says: "You know, when a clown dies, they don't give him a coffin. They wait until 14 other clowns have also died - then they stuff them all into one coffin, and then they bury that." The mourners are even more confused now. One angrily yells out "Hell buddy, that wasn't funny!" The clown says: "You want me to crack jokes at a fucking funeral?"
  • You bastard! That dead clown was my uncle! And to think, we'll never hear the sweet sound of his Party Tooter again.
  • In all seriousness, I have been very strongly affected by the deaths of these men, and the suffering of their families. I have a slight connection to the area, and I have cried right along with them. But it's human to face tragedy with humor. It's also human to realize we're all mortal. And quid, I think I want to marry you.
  • Quick, quiddy, before she changes her mind!
  • On the other hand, back off bitch, I saw him first!
  • via Metafilter:
    "Reporter candid about time at site of W. Va. mine explosion 'I've had some time to sleep and some time to think about the past two days. It's a blur. I don't often like revealing my thought processes about my work and reporting, but I need to decompress. Here's what I remember, unedited and kinda raw.'"
  • I'm sorry. I've had dibs on quid for a looooong time. I will NOT give him up. So there.
  • ......and Chy, too. So don't even bother. ;>
  • damn!
  • No fair! You can't have two!!
  • .. and quid, joke's not funny; I'm losing the whole yuk factor. You coalition of the unwilling better watch out for my intercontinental bitchslap.
  • sorry, that was yesterday. I'm as nonplussed as you are. I think my cat did that.
  • ...someone around here has a fascination with bitchslapping people.
  • you rang?
  • ... and quid, joke's not funny OK, how about this: a clown walks into a bar mitzvah ...
  • Two cannibals are eating a clown. The first cannibal turns to the second cannibal and says...