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Post by Classicblast on Apr 5, 2010 23:05:13 GMT -5
At least 12 coal miners are dead following an explosion in Whitesville West Virginia.
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Post by Slayzie on Apr 6, 2010 5:29:12 GMT -5
Such accidents should not be happening in this day and age. Poor buggers. ><
Still, if coal miners over there earn as much as coal miners here do, at least their families will be well looked after for the next little while, so that's some consolation I suppose.
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Post by Phil on Apr 6, 2010 16:27:19 GMT -5
That's a real tragic thing. There's not a lot you can do though. You inspect mines all you want but like any mountain when the rocks deside to slide there's colapsing and there's not much you can do other than get out of the way if you can even do that.
Coal miners are like most other industrial or factory jobs to let Slayzie know. The workers are paid well but they're not hardly hugely wealthy. The family situation is kind of like my wife and the kids when they're of age would receive a death benefit from my place of work should I be killed on the job. Not likely but possible of course. If you take a guy in my situation that would leave a wife with a 12, 6 and 3 year old I can't think a financial supliment does that much. Some situations don't even have that though.
I dont know that there's a safer way to mine coal. About every 5 or so years a story like this hits the news again. It was a much more dangerous job 30 plus years ago but there were also more coal miners and the job didn't pay as well then as it does now.
There's a lot of other health dangers too. Breathing coal is not he healthiest thing. Excessive exposure to coal is bad for flesh too.
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Kimm
Moderator 
Posts: 2,993
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Post by Kimm on Apr 6, 2010 20:30:58 GMT -5
Thats very sad of course.
I wonder if heavy rain or strong winds weaken the mine at all. Theres probably a geological explanation but like Phil said once a rock is moved the walls can crash in. Like any structure that was perfectly strong until that happens.
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Alan
Full Member
Swamp Thing
Posts: 95
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Post by Alan on Apr 7, 2010 0:48:51 GMT -5
I don't think there's any job that doesn't have risks. Even the possiblilty of fatal risks. Coal mines can cave in, rivers flood, bridges sometimes buckle, policemen are sometimes shot, firemen are sometimes trapped in a fire. I can keep going but there's no need I think everybody knows what I mean.
Things are inspected. Sadly enough times bad things have happened that by now inventions have made it safer than it was before. That's probably true of most jobs. Bullet proof vests following shooting deaths. Better hard hats followed some deadly blows to the head.
There's land meters and they're getting to be more accurate all the time. Maybe soon they will be able to detect when the ground in a mine or land in general is moving and its best to get out of the way when there's still time but we aren't quite there yet.
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Post by Classicblast on Apr 8, 2010 1:04:15 GMT -5
There's a lot of danger in any construction. Coal mining would be a construction nature of job. There's precautions but like Alan said you can't always be sure when mother earth decided to let go of some boulders.
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Post by Mahnarch on Apr 10, 2010 14:29:25 GMT -5
They finally made inside...
Unfortunately, the four suspected survivors did not make it.
***
On a side note: I spend a TON of time on the road so my chances of being involved in an auto-related accident are higher than a regular commuter.
Barack Obama has demaded[/b] a report on the incident.
Demanded!
Hey, PAL! YOU don't DEMAND anything!!
If some 4-wheeler pulls out in front of me, slams his brakes and I come barreling through his trunk, you will never DEMAND anything from ME!
However, you may ASK me: "Hey, what happened, Mahnarch?"
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