Six miners dead and twenty-one still missing in a horrific mine explosion in West Virginia 4:30 PM this afternoon.
Some would blame the incident on the poor security measures being followed by Massey Energy mining. Massey Energy is owned by global warming denier and conservative activist Don Blankenship, and has recently been the target of protests by environmental and other activists.A large number of West Virginia coal miners are feared dead or missing this evening following an explosion this afternoon at a Massey Energy underground mine in Raleigh County.
Emergency crews are still responding this evening to the incident, which initial reports indicate occurred at about 3 p.m.
Agency director Ron Wooten said his agency is still assessing the incident, which occurred at Massey subsidiary Performance Coal’s Upper Big Branch Mine-South near Namoa.
“We have received information that there are several unaccounted for, perhaps as many as 21,” Wooten said in a phone interview. “We have received a report that there are six fatalities.”
