The worst mining disaster in American History occurred in the community of Monongah, West Virginia on December 6, 1907. Around 10 o'clock in the morning after a full force of 380 men and boys had begun their shift, mines number 6 and 8 of the Consolidated Coal Company shook from the impact of an underground explosion. A total of 362 men and boys lost there lives leaving 250 widows and over 1000 children without support.
The mines were connected above ground by a steel bridge over the West Fork River and underground by a labyrinth of tunnels. An enourmous cave-in obstructed the main entrance of number 6 and above ground, the main opening was blocked by the wreckage from two strings of ore cars and two electric dynamo motors. The underground structure was twisted into a mass of rock, wood and metal. The explosion disrupted the ventilation systems causing an effluence of deadly gases to be trapped within the mines. Those on the surface concluded that the men and boys who survived the explosion and cave-in would soon succumb to the gases. The poisonous fumes permeated the mines causing rescuers to work in relays as they had no protective devises, such as gas masks and could only work in the deadly atmosphere for fifteen minutes before resurfacing. Some of the would be rescuers were seriously injured by inhaling the vapors and had to be taken away for medical treatment.
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