Massey GUILTY! in Upper Big Branch tragedy

By Will Parry

The verdict is in. Massey Energy and its parent company are guilty of multiple violations of mine safety regulations that caused the horrific underground deaths of 29 miners at Massey’s non-union Upper Big Branch Mine in West Virginia on April 5, 2010.

For these corporate murders, not a single Massey honcho faces prison. The company bought its way out of criminal prosecution and prison terms with a $209 million settlement. How many such ghastly tragedies must the nation endure before simple justice is done?

The explosion apparently occurred when a spark from the friction caused by cutting coal ignited an explosive accumulation of methane, causing a fireball. The fireball in turn ignited coal dust that had been allowed to build up. The coal dust explosion raged throughout more than two miles of mine passages. And 29 men died.

A 972-page Labor Department report confirmed that “unlawful policies and practices” were the “root cause of the tragedy.” The report identified 369 violations of the federal Mine Safety and Health Act (MSHA), including twelve flagrant violations that contributed directly to the fatal explosion.

Massey even kept two sets of books – one logging safety hazards, the other, for the eyes of mine inspectors, with the hazards edited out. The company also illegally warned their supervisors of impending inspections, and created an environment of fear to prevent whistleblowers from reporting violations.

The Labor Department’s findings were basically confirmed by a team of experts in coal mining, mining law and occupational safety who conducted a six-month independent study ordered by West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin.

Responsibility for the explosion “lies with the management of Massey Energy,” Manchin’s experts reported. “By frequently and knowingly violating the law and blatantly disregarding known safety practices, Massey exhibited a corporate mentality that placed the drive to produce coal above worker safety.”

Despite the size of the fine, the families of the men killed in the accident consider the settlement to be justice denied. They want the responsible executives tried and convicted. But weak mining laws give prosecutors a steep uphill battle to convict. And legislation to toughen the act has thus far been blocked by the coal industry’s intense lobbying.

“Even though you have the biggest mine disaster in 40 years, there’s been absolutely no federal legislation flowing from it,” said Tony Oppegard, a Kentucky attorney who represents miners.

“Until someone goes to jail, there will be no justice done here,” said Cecil E. Roberts, president of the United Mine Workers.

The statistics are cruel: Three hundred and sixty-nine safety violations. Twenty-nine working miners hurled, choked or crushed to death in the airless dark a thousand feet down.

We need to feel, even if only vicariously, the searing anguish of the families. The report from Governor Manchin’s team quotes Leo Long, an elderly retired miner testifying at a Congressional field hearing one month after the explosion. Long’s grandson, 31-year-old Ronald Lee Maynor, the father of two, was one of the 29 who lost their lives.

“It just tore us apart, broke our hearts,” Long said. “I cry every day and every night. I can’t help it.” He then pleaded with the members of the committee. “I beg you. Please do something.”