A tragic ending

last updated 8 January 2015

Sago, W.V.

Jubilation turned to sorrow and anger for mining families this week who were told that 12 of the 13 miners trapped in a coal mine had miraculously survived, only to be informed hours later that all but one was dead. The miners had been trapped for nearly two days, 13,000 feet down, as rescue workers tunneled to reach them. Monitors recorded toxic levels of carbon monoxide, but families camped out at a nearby church clung to hope. Shortly before midnight on Tuesday, rescuers reached the men, and one rescuer reported over a speakerphone that the team was checking their vital signs. That comment was misinterpreted as confirmation they were alive, and word quickly spread to the church, where family members rejoiced. Nearly three hours passed before officials told the families the sad truth. “We had a miracle,” said Anna Casto, who lost a cousin, “and it was taken away from us.” The one survivor, 27-year-old Randal McCloy, was in critical condition, suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning and a collapsed lung.