Iron Miners
It is currently Thu Mar 28, 2024 12:46 pm

All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 14 posts ] 
Author Message
 Post subject: 2 men who sneaked into mine found safe
PostPosted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:41 am 
Offline
Site Admin

Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:33 pm
Posts: 3080
Location: Above the Sterling Hill Mine
2 men who sneaked into mine found safe

By BRIAN FARKAS, Associated Press WriterTue Aug 1, 12:20 PM ET

Two men who sneaked into a closed coal mine to search for scrap metal to sell were rescued after they became lost about 3,000 feet inside the mine, authorities said. Crews found Franklin Johnson, 44, and Glen Edelman, 35, Monday evening, a few hours after family members reported them missing.

They were treated at a hospital and released.

The rescuers traced them by following the fumes from a fire the two had set after their flashlight failed as they hunkered down in the mine, authorities said. An expert said they were lucky they didn't set off an explosion or suffocate themselves.

The men, who were last seen Saturday, didn't have any food but there was water in the mine to drink, State Police Trooper 1st Class R.H. Green said.

Holly Johnson, 26, said her brother-in-law stopped by Saturday morning to borrow a flashlight and said he was going to the mine to look for scrap metal.

"We didn't think nothing of it," she said. "He's always looking for ways to get money, to pay the bills and eat."

Green said Johnson and Edelman managed to get into the mine by crawling through a hole in the ground that looked like "a groundhog hole." The rescuers had to use an excavator to enlarge the hole so they could enter the mine, he said.

The mine, which is owned by Massey Energy Inc., closed in 1993, and the entrance was barricaded to keep people out. Shane Harvey, a Massey lawyer, said rescue crews found tools and copper wiring in the mine and hoped the men would be charged with trespassing.

"It's very dangerous to break into a mine," he said. "They really risked their lives for very little."


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:45 am 
Offline
Site Admin

Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:33 pm
Posts: 3080
Location: Above the Sterling Hill Mine
Another reason to stay out of mines. Without the proper gear, experience, or training, you can easily get lost and never find your way out. They were very lucky they were found, didn't hit any mine gas, and told someone that they were in there. They probably would have never found their way out on their own.


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 10:04 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Fri Jul 15, 2005 2:34 pm
Posts: 6872
Location: Within 60 Miles of the Northern Anthracite Field
wow thats a good one. a fire, nice! where did this happen?

_________________
Come over to the Dark Side....... We have Cookies!


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 10:12 am 
Offline
Site Admin

Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:33 pm
Posts: 3080
Location: Above the Sterling Hill Mine
That happened in West Virginia. They are also very lucky that they didn't start a mine fire. Coal is a fuel, so I don't know what would make them think starting a fire in a coal mine is a bright idea. Recently mined mines in WV are known for having methane. Look at the Sago Mine.


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 1:37 pm 
Have the candidates been chosen yet for this year's Darwin Awards? I'd like to nominate these two Einsteins.


Top
  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 2:48 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Tue Jul 05, 2005 2:44 pm
Posts: 385
Location: Hamburg, NJ
They went in there to look for scrap metal, DOH! Actually the fire probably saved their life, they either would have died of hypothermia, or never been found without the smoke.


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 3:01 pm 
In this case, surprisingly, that's probably true. I could never understand, however, how people think it's a good idea to start fires in mines. There's evidence of campfires on the second level of Bull Mine. I don't understand how anyone would be stupid enough to ignore the dangers of carbon monoxide. I do know one thing though. Whoever is doing this in Bull Mine isn't a caver or mine researcher. It's the stupid teenagers who go in mines to party and drink that spoil it for the serious explorers. Then the mine usualy ends up being gated, and only an elite and obnoxious few are given keys. Just look at what happened to the few caves that exist in NJ. Of the ones that survived the backhoe, the majority are gated. Just try to gain permission to explore on of these caves and you'll find that it's politics as usual! That's NJ for you.


Top
  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Aug 02, 2006 3:10 pm 
Offline

Joined: Mon Jul 18, 2005 11:12 am
Posts: 385
God I love NJ! :roll:


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Aug 30, 2006 1:19 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Fri Jul 29, 2005 3:43 pm
Posts: 921
Location: Western PA
hey, what do you think they burned inside the mine as fuel? timbers? i imagine coal would be tough without a grate...

_________________
-Thou shalt not little vein-


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Aug 31, 2006 11:04 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Fri Jul 08, 2005 12:41 pm
Posts: 2919
Location: Hard coal region, PA
Yeah, I imagine it must have been some wood they found.....? I don't really know about bituminous coal, but anthracite can't be lit with just a lighter...


just plain stupid. people like that ruin it for everyone.

_________________
This ain't longwall... this is long hole!


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Aug 31, 2006 11:05 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Fri Jul 08, 2005 12:41 pm
Posts: 2919
Location: Hard coal region, PA
(not that it's for everyone....i'm just sayin.)

_________________
This ain't longwall... this is long hole!


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Aug 31, 2006 11:53 pm 
It would be pretty hard just trying to burn wood down there too. I wonder what they used for kindling? You can't just light a log, especialy one that's been in a continuosly damp environment for decades. I wonder if they had some magnesium, or another kind of incendiary device?


Top
  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Fri Sep 01, 2006 10:37 am 
Offline
Site Admin

Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:33 pm
Posts: 3080
Location: Above the Sterling Hill Mine
True.. They also had to be able to put it out. If they just tried to light lets say a coal pillar, it wouldn't have been that easy to put out (even if it did light). If they had other stuff to burn separate from the coal, it would have been somewhat controllable. I would tend to think they found old rags, scrap wood, old timbers, and built a fire.


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Fri Sep 01, 2006 1:07 pm 
That's probably what happened.


Top
  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 14 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 52 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Search for:
Jump to:  
cron
Powered by phpBB © 2000, 2002, 2005, 2007 phpBB Group