Benwood ranks as the third worst coal mine disaster in West Virginia history. Ironically, it occurred 10 years to the day after the state's second worst disaster. Exactly a decade earlier, an explosion at Eccles in Raleigh County had killed 183. Tags Related to This Article. Benwood Mine Disaster; Coal; Radio; This Week in West …

On December 6, 1907, a massive explosion ripped through the Fairmont Coal Company's No. 6 and 8 mines in Monongah, Marion County. The powerful blast, which shook the …

| Back to e-WV The West Virginia Encyclopedia Osage and Pursglove Mine Disasters. By 1942, despite decades of production, the numerous coal operations of the Scotts Run district near Morgantown had never experienced a mining disaster. Then, with the mines in full production for World War II, three disasters within eight months killed 89 miners.. …

Buffalo Creek Mine Disaster: Feb. 26, 1972. February 26, 2022, marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most devastating mine disasters in U.S. history. Three coal waste dams in West Virginia …

| Back to e-WV The West Virginia Encyclopedia Farmington Mine Disaster. It was on a damp, cold morning on November 20, 1968, when a gas and dust explosion occurred in Consolidation Coal Company's No. 9 mine in the great Pittsburgh Coal Seam near Farmington and Mannington in Marion County.There had been deadly explosions in the …

The Benwood Mine Disaster Memorial (3 large stones) commemorates the 119 coal miners killed in the April 28, 1924 explosion. The small stone off from the main monument commemorates the 5 coal miners killed in an explosion 18 years later on May 18, 1942 at the Hitchman Mine, also located in Benwood. The memorials were formally …

Monongah, West Virginia Mining Disaster. On December 6, 1907, the Fairmont Coal Company's interconnected Number 6 and 8 mines at Monongah exploded, killing 361 miners, the worst coal mining disaster in U.S. history. People could feel the impacts from the explosions as far as eight miles away.

Everettville Mine Disaster. On April 30, 1927, an explosion roared through the Federal No. 3 mine owned by New England Fuel and Transportation Company of Everettville, Monongalia County. The explosion, the …

Fifty years ago this week, 78 men were killed when a coal mine exploded in West Virginia. The Farmington Mine Disaster devastated a small town and ushered in new health and safety laws...

Share Benwood Mine Disaster. Benwood Mine Disaster. At about 7:10 on Monday morning, April 28, 1924, the workday was just beginning at the Benwood coal mine south of Wheeling. As the miners went through their daily routine of preparing their work areas and undercutting the coal, an explosion ripped through the Wheeling Steel …

Thus, the agency investigates each fatality thoroughly to determine root causes and use the lessons learned to prevent future tragedies. On November 20, 1968, a catastrophic explosion rocked the Consol No. 9 coal mine outside of Farmington, West Virginia. Seventy-eight miners perished in that accident. While the cause of the explosion was …

A memorial to honor the 29 West Virginian Coal Miners that lost their lives in the Upper Big Branch mining disaster on April 5th, 2010 is seen along Route 3 near Whitesville, West Virginia April ...

An explosion rocks the Sago Mine in Sago, West Virginia on January 2, 2006. 13 coal miners were trapped, and all but one eventually died. The tragedy, exacerbated by false reports that 12 of the ...

In West Virginia's Marion County, an explosion in a network of mines owned by the Fairmont Coal Company in Monongah kills 361 coal miners. It was the worst mining disaster in American...

MSHA investigates all serious and fatal mining accidents, then issues a comprehensive report of its findings. On this page are investigative reports, internal reviews and independent assessments of high-profile mining disasters that have occurred since 2000. Upper Big Branch Mine-South On April 5, 2010, a massive coal dust explosion at this …

The Sago accident was followed within months by several other fatal coal mining accidents, including one other in West Virginia. Two miners were killed in Massey Energy's Aracoma Alma No. 1 Mine in Logan County three weeks after the Sago disaster. The fatal accidents spurred a flurry of new laws and tougher regulations.

Share Farmington Mine Disaster. Farmington Mine Disaster. It was on a damp, cold morning on November 20, 1968, when a gas and dust explosion occurred in Consolidation Coal Company's No. 9 mine in the great Pittsburgh Coal Seam near Farmington and Mannington in Marion County. There had been deadly explosions in the mine in 1901 …

West Virginia. Monongah mining disaster of 1907, deadly mining explosion on Dec. 6, 1907, in Monongah, W.Va., that killed more than 350 miners. The West Virginia coal mine that was the site of the disaster had an extensive maze of underground tunnels. About 10:00 am on December 6, an underground explosion occurred in one section, with a …

On April 28, 1914, a miner in Eccles No. 5 mine in Raleigh County blew a hole through a barrier of coal in an effort to shorten the distance between his assigned working areas, …

On April 5, 2010, the day after Easter, a series of explosions rocked the Upper Big Branch mine near Montcoal, Raleigh County. Twenty-nine men were killed, and another man was seriously injured. It was …

Arts Apr 5, 2010 10:08 PM EDT. Updated 3:14 a.m. ET Tuesday | At least 25 coal miners were killed and more remained missing after an explosion Monday afternoon at an …

By 1942, despite decades of production, the numerous coal operations of the Scotts Run district near Morgantown had never experienced a mining disaster. Then, with the mines in full production for World War II, three …

BISHOP, Va., Feb. 4 - (AP) - Thirty-seven miners perished today in a rumbling gas explosion deep in the giant Bishop coal mine that burrows under the mountains of the Virginia-West Virginia line. It was the nation's worst mine disaster since 119 died in a blast at West Frankfort, Ill., Dec. 21, 1951. There was no immediate official word on what ...

Just three years later, West Virginia's first mining disaster occurred at the Mountain Brook shaft mine in the Preston County town of Newburg. A methane gas explosion there killed 39, making this the first in a long line. ... the number was five.) Coal production in the state increased from slightly more than two million tons in 1883 to more ...

Important Dates in West Virginia's Mining History. 1742 First discovery of coal by John Peter Salley in the area now comprising West Virginia. 1770 George Washington noted "a cole hill on fire" near West Columbia in current Mason County. 1800 Pittsburgh Coal Seam was discovered in northern Kanawha County. 1810 First commercial coal mine ...

In West Virginia's Marion County, an explosion in a network of mines owned by the Fairmont Coal Company in Monongah kills 361 coal miners. It was the worst mining disaster in American history.

Glen Rogers Mine Disaster. A methane gas explosion November 6, 1923, inside the ill-fated Glen Rogers coal mine killed 27 men, the worst accident of any kind in Wyoming County history. Government officials blamed the inexperience of a crew constructing a ventilation passage, whose work diverted the airflow and allowed explosive gas to …

Disasters continue to trouble the West Virginia coal industry. On January 2, 2006, an explosion killed 12 miners at the Sago mine in Upshur County. Another explosion killed 29 men at the Upper Big Branch Montcoal Eagle Mine in Raleigh County on April 5, 2010, …

On December 6, 1907, a massive explosion ripped through the Fairmont Coal Company's No. 6 and 8 mines in Monongah, Marion County. The powerful blast, which shook the earth and was heard several miles away, killed at least 361 men, making it the worst mine disaster in U.S. history. Although investigators never definitively …