2001 — Sep 23, Jim Walter Resources No. 5 Coal Mine Gas Explosion, Brookwood, AL–13
— 13 Dubaniewicz. “From Scotia to Brookwood, fatal US underground coal mine…,” 2009.
— 13 Mine Safety and Health Administration. Historical Data on Mine Disasters in the U.S.
— 13 MSHA. Report of Investigation. Fatal Underground Coal Mine Explosions, Sep 23, 2011.
— 13 NPR. “10 Years Later, Remembering One of the Nation’s Worst Mine Disasters.” 9-23-2011.
— 13 United Mine Workers of America. “Jim Walters Resources #5 Mine Disaster.”
Narrative Information
Dubaniewicz: “Thirteen miners were killed during the 2001 Jim Walter Resources No. 5 mine, Brookwood, AL, double explosion disaster (MSHA, 2002;[1] UMWA, 2003). The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) investigation concluded that both Brookwood explosions were probably ignited in intake air entries, and both were probably ignited by electrical equipment.” (Dubaniewicz 2009, 52)
NPR: “…the Jim Walter mine disaster…was the nation’s worst mine disaster in nearly two decades and it involved a methane gas explosion, a familiar danger underground. One miner was trapped by the initial explosion and he and 12 rescuers were killed by another blast.
“Patrick Rupinski of the Tuscaloosa News retells the tragic story in this piece today. Rupinski notes that the initial citations and fines levied by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) against Jim Walter Resources were slashed severely by a federal judge. A $435,000 fine was eventually reduced to $5,000 and six of eight major violations directly related to the disaster were dismissed….
“Veteran coal industry reporter Ken Ward recalls on his Charleston Gazette Coal Tattoo blog today his remembrance last year of the Jim Walter disaster:
It’s worth remembering that the Bush administration’s response to Brookwood was to proceed to dismantle the regulatory safety net intended to protect our nation’s coal miners. Since then, we’ve seen not only Sago, Aracoma and Darby, but also Crandall Canyon and now, Upper Big Branch. Since that day in September 2001, 292 coal miners in the United States have died…
“….Ward also quotes the late Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV), who characterized the litany of coal mine disasters this way:
First, the disaster. Then the weeping. Then the outrage. And we are all too familiar with what comes next. After a few weeks, when the cameras are gone, when the ink on the editorials has dried, everything returns to business as usual. The health and the safety of America’s coal miners, the men and women upon whom the Nation depends so much, is once again forgotten until the next disaster…
(National Public Radio. “10 Years Later, Remembering One of the Nation’s Worst Mine Disasters.” 9-23-2011.)
UMWA: “On September 23rd, two explosions rocked the Jim Walter No. 5 underground mine in Brookwood, Alabama. Thirteen coal miners were killed in the explosions, twelve of whom had rushed into the mine to save their trapped co-workers. This is the single largest coal mining disaster in the United States since 1984. The fallen heroes:
Gaston Adams Jr., 56
Ray Ashworth, 53
Nelson Banks, 52
Dave Blevins, 52
Clarence Boyd, 38
Wendell Johnson, 52
John Knox, 44
Dennis Mobley, 56
Charles Nail, 59
Joe Riggs, 51
Charles Smith, 44
Joe Sorah, 46
Terry Stewart, 44. (UMWA. “Jim Walters Resources #5 Mine Disaster.”)
Sources
Dubaniewicz, Thomas H. Jr.. “From Scotia to Brookwood, fatal US underground coal mine explosions ignited in intake air courses.” Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, Vol. 22, no. 1, Jan 2009, pp. 52-58. At: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/mining/pubs/pubreference/outputid3057.htm
Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). Historical Data on Mine Disasters in the United States. Arlington, VA: MSHA, U.S. Department of Labor. Accessed October 5, 2008 at: http://www.msha.gov/MSHAINFO/FactSheets/MSHAFCT8.HTM
Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). Report of Investigation. Fatal Underground Coal Mine Explosions, September 23, 2001, No. 5 Mine, Jim Walter Resources, Inc., Brookwood, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama (ID No. 01-01322). Arlington, VA: MSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 12-11-2002, 80 pages. Accessed 11-4-2015 at: http://www.msha.gov/fatals/2001/jwr5/ftl01c2032light.pdf
National Public Radio. “10 Years Later, Remembering One of the Nation’s Worst Mine Disasters.” 9-23-2011. Accessed 11-4-2015 at: http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2011/09/23/140747577/10-years-later-remembering-one-of-the-nations-worst-mine-disasters
United Mine Workers of America, AFL-CIO, CLC. “Jim Walters Resources #5 Mine Disaster.” Accessed 11-4-2015: http://www.umwa.org/?q=content/jim-walters-resources-5-mine-disaster
United Mine Workers of America. Jim Walters Resources #5 Mine Disaster, September 23, 2001; A United Mine Workers of America Report. Triangle, VA: 2-20-2010 modification, 139 pages. Accessed 11-4-2015: http://www.umwa.org/files/documents/UMWA_JWR_Report.pdf
[1] Report of investigation, fatal underground coal mine explosions, September 23, 2001, No. 5 Mine, Jim Walter Resources, Inc. Alabama. CAI-2001-20 through 32. U.S. Department of Labor, Mine Safety and Health Administration.