Mining is one of the most dangerous industries in the world. During 2006 in the United States alone, 45 coal miners died on the job. The most widely publicized deaths came from a January 2006 explosion in the Sago Mine in West Virginia, where a delayed res- cue effort killed twelve men and severely injured the lone survivor. Three weeks later a conveyer belt fire in the Aracoma Alma Mine-also in West Virginia-killed two others. In the decade preceding these disasters, the national budget for Mine Safety and Health Administration had been cut by $2.8 million, leading to the loss of 183 staff members.

The Sago Mine disaster was attributed to a combination of natural and man-made causes: a lightning strike touched off the methane blast, mine operators did not monitor methane levels inside the sealed section of the mine, and seals used to close off that inac- tive section were not strong enough to withstand the blast. Searchers did not reach the team trapped inside the mine for 40 hours.

Investigators into the deaths at the Aracoma Alma mine concluded that a previous fire had not been reported, a fire alarm did not work, a critical wall was missing, a waterline had no water in it, and an automatic fire sprinkler was missing. The deaths may have been caused, in part, by difficulty donning breathing devices. After the disaster, the Bush administration reinstated a Clinton-era proposed safety standard for breathing devices that the Bush administration had withdrawn in 2001.

Federal investigators missed obvious problems before both accidents.

Find out what actions were taken against the owners of the Sago Mine and International Coal Group, the owner of the Aracoma Alma Mine. Have any lawsuits been filed? What has West Virginia done to make mining safer? The federal government?