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Report: Utah Mine Collapse Was Avoidable

Posted May 8, 08 1:02 PM CDT in US 

(Newser) – Mining officials concealed information that could have prevented the deaths of nine miners in Utah last year, says a congressional report out today. The August disaster followed the collapse of a nearby section of the mine, which indicated that the terrain was unsafe—but officials at the Crandall Mine didn’t report the earlier incident to federal safety authorities, the New York Times reports.

“Even after the near-disaster in March, the company forged ahead,” said the head of the committee studying the case. Further, a federal organization had clearly noted that the area was dangerous, the report found. The committee has asked the Justice Department to assess whether the mine's manager and others intentionally hid the earlier collapse.

Source New York Times

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Karen Jobe Templeton sculpts the face of Dale Black for part of a bronze memorial of the miners and rescuers who were killed in the Crandall Canyon Mine collapse.   (AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac)
A photo of Dale Black, who died attempting to rescue six trapped coal miners, is shown at his funeral service in Huntington, Utah.   (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, Pool)
A T-shirt showing the names of six trapped coal miners inside the Crandall Canyon Mine is seen during a fundraiser, Sunday, Aug. 19, 2007, in Price, Utah. Officials extinguished nearly all hope of finding...   (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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coal mine • mine collapse • mine safety • Crandall Canyon Mine


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