Upper Big BranchA Synopsis of Key Events April 5 to April 13, 2010

Monday, April 5 3:01 p.m. Explosion erupts through the mine, blasting debris out of the portals and lasting for several minutes. The carbon monoxide monitoring system alarms and mine fan records show a major disruption to the ventilation. 3:05 p.m. 3:30 p.m. A phone call is placed to MSHA and West Virginia MHST emergency hotlines reporting an air reversal on the beltline and CO 50 to 100 parts per million. Six Performance Coal personnel enter the mine from the Ellis portal; four others enter from the Upper Big Branch portal. 3:30 p.m. First group of trained Massey Energy rescue personnel arrive at Upper Big Branch and some enter the mine. The six person group that entered the Ellis portal discovers a mantrip and begins evacuating victims from the mine. 4:22 p.m. The Whitesville Volunteer Fire Department receives a phone call requesting an ambulance. It arrives at the mine eight minutes later. 4:30 p.m. 5:30 p.m. MSHA officials arrive at Upper Big Branch and issue a control order. The mine rescue plan allows for two rescue teams to enter the mine and establish a fresh air base. 5:30 p.m. 8:00 p.m. Family members begin gathering at the Marfork Safety Building and the press begins to assemble at Marsh Fork Elementary School. Rescue teams advance into the mine, encountering high levels of carbon monoxide on the tail side of the longwall. 8:00 p.m. 10:00 p.m. Officials conduct the first briefing for the miners families, and Massey Energy issues a news release detailing initial estimate of fatalities and unaccounted miners. Mine rescue teams continue to advance inside the Upper Big Branch Coal Mine. 10:30 p.m. 11:30p.m. Mine rescue teams report finding the refuge chamber located near the longwall which has not been deployed. 11:30 p.m. Midnight Rescue teams near the HG22 section report their gas detectors are over-the-range for carbon monoxide and methane. The Command Center orders them out of the mine. Tuesday, April 6 2:30 a.m. 3:30 a.m. All rescue team members exit the coal mine. State officials speak to the families and indicate the number of deceased and missing. Wednesday, April 7 Drilling and monitoring of gases continues all day. Briefings for families and media are conducted periodically by state officials, MSHA personnel, and Massey Energy Executives. Friday, April 9 12:30 a.m. 5:00 a.m. Rescue teams enter the mine and later detect elevated carbon monoxide levels and smoke. All rescue team members are ordered out of the mine. 11:00 a.m. 4:00 p.m. Funeral services are held in various southern West Virginia towns for seven coal miners lost in the explosion. 4:00 p.m. 8:00 p.m. Two rescue teams enter while nitrogen is being pumped into the mine through boreholes drilled earlier in the week. Two additional teams enter after 7:00 p.m. 10:00 p.m. - 11:30 p.m. Mine rescue teams locate the four remaining victims. Saturday, April 10 The recovery effort begins in earnest. Teams are forced out of the mine at 5:50 p.m. due to elevated levels of carbon monoxide and low oxygen levels. Rescue teams will be forced out of the mine several more times over the course of the next two days. 6:00 a.m. Crews begin drilling the first of three boreholes from above the HG Thursday, April 8 22 section. Monitoring of gases continues throughout 3:30 a.m. 10:30 a.m. the day. Rescue teams are sent back into the mine to search for 9:00 p.m. No unusual four missing miners and to underground noise is detected begin the recovery effort. by seismic equipment set up Gas readings at the borehole by MSHA. show explosive levels; all mine rescue teams are ordered to exit the mine. Briefings for families and media continue throughout the day by state officials and Massey Energy Executives. 11:35 p.m. State and Federal officials and Massey Energy Executives provide final briefing for the families. Massey Energy Executives indicate that the entire mine had been explored, all of the miners had been located, and Tuesday, April 13 no one survived. Governor Manchin announces to By early morning, the gathered media during a press recovery effort is complete. conference, We did not The last mine rescuers on receive the miracle we were site cover the entrance to praying for. This journey has the UBB mine in a large ended and now the healing American flaga final will start. homage to the men and the sacrifice they made for the country.

In Memory of
Carl Acord...............................52 Jason Atkins.............................25 Christopher Bell......................33 Gregory Steven Brock..............47 Kenneth Allen Chapman........53 Robert Clark............................41 Charles Timothy Davis...........52 Cory Davis...............................20 Michael Lee Elswick................56 William L Griffith...................54 Steven Harrah.........................40 Edward Dean Jones.................50 Richard K Lane.......................45 William Lynch.........................59 Joe Marcum.............................57 Ronald Lee Maynor................31 Nicholas Darrell McCroskey...26 James E Mooney......................51 Adam Keith Morgan................21 Rex L Mullins..........................50 Joshua S Napper......................25 Howard D Boone Payne......53 Dillard Earl Persinger.............32 Joel R Price..............................55 Gary Quarles...........................33 Deward Scott...........................58 Grover Dale Skeens.................57 Benny Willingham.................61 Ricky Workman......................50

5 April 2010

Credits:

Governors Independent Investigation Panel. (2011). Synopsis of Key Events. The Upper Big Branch Report. Retrieved on April 1, 2012 from http://www.nttc.edu/ programs&projects/minesafety/disasterinvestigations/upperbigbranch/synopsis.asp