January 2, 2006, Sago, West Virginia, Upshur County, mining life was once again disrupted and changed forever as the Sago Mine, part of Wolf Run Mining Company exploded due to a methane gas leak.

   The blast had trapped 13 West Virginia coal miners underground fro nearly two days. Only one miner, Randall McCloy survived. It was said to be the worst mining disaster in the United States since 13 coal miners were killed in the Jim Walter Resources Mine Disaster on September 23, 2001 in Alabama.

  The mine explosion received news coverage from networks all across the world and special coverage after mining officials released incorrect information. Many media outlets, including the New York Times reported that 12 survivors had been found alive when only one of the thirteen miners had survived.

  

The explosion occurred at approximately 6:30 a.m.  at the beginning of the first shift after the mine reopened after the New Year's holiday weekend. An examination conducted at 5:50 am by a mine fire boss had cleared the mine for use. Two carts of miners were making their way into the mine to begin work.

Early reports noted that there was a thunderstorm in the area at the time and suggested a lightning strike near the mine entrance may have ignited methane, but no one reported seeing such a strike. Sensors from the US National Lightning Detection Network indicated at least two cloud-to-ground lightning strikes near the mine. Another early theory was that lightning struck a methane well that had previously been drilled from the surface to an area behind the seals. Methane wells are used to extract methane from coal seams and sometimes from sealed areas when methane levels are high.

Storm systems are accompanied by low atmospheric pressure, which causes more methane to escape from coal seams and sealed areas. In winter the air is drier and less dense and creates a drier mine environment. Such conditions have been known to contribute to past mine fires and explosions. Other factors affecting methane liberation include whether the mine ventilation system is exhausting (negative pressure) or blowing (positive pressure), and the operating pressures of the fans.

Fourteen men on the second cart escaped the initial explosion. The 12 trapped miners were on the first cart, which apparently passed the point where the explosion occurred. The foreman on the second cart, whose brother was among those trapped, the mine superintendent and three others entered the mine to rescue the trapped miners. They reached 9,000 feet (2,700 m) into the mine before air quality detectors indicated there was too much carbon monoxide to proceed. In addition, repairs they had made to ventilation controls raised fears that increased fresh air to the interior of the mine may cause a second explosion.

It was reported that the early hours after the blast were chaotic and mining company did not call a specialized mine rescue crew until 8:04 a.m. — more than 90 minutes after the blast. The company notified the Federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) at 8:30. The company said it started its calls at 7:40. MSHA records two calls at 8:10 to personnel who were out of town due to the holiday. MSHA arrived on site at approximately 10:30 am. The first rescue crew arrived ten minutes later.

High levels of carbon monoxide (CO) and methane gas in the mine atmosphere made it necessary for rescuers to wait 12 hours after the explosion to begin to reach the miners. Tests taken through holes drilled from the surface showed that the air near where the miners were last known to be stationed contained 1,300 parts per million of CO. More than 200 parts per million is considered unsafe. However, each miner had a self-contained self-rescue device that provided one hour of breathable air. Emergency supplies were stored in 55-gallon drumss (205 L drums) within the mine.

Even after the gases abated, rescue teams had to proceed with caution, continually testing for hazards such as water seeps, explosive gas concentrations, and unsafe roof conditions. This limited their rate of progress to 1,000 feet (300 m) an hour. They checked in every 500 feet (150 m), and then disconnected their telephones until the next checkpoint in order to avoid the possibility of a spark creating another explosion. MSHA had deployed a 1,300-lb. (520 kg) robott into the mine as well, but pulled it out after it became mired 2,600 feet (790 m) from the mine entrance.

After more than nine hours of searching, rescue teams pulled out of the mine at about 3:40 a.m. Tuesday, January 3. Through an agency spokeswoman, Bob Friend of MSHA said the teams were withdrawn when they discovered that the mine's atmospheric monitoring system was still running. Due to the air quality in the mine, power to the system could have caused another explosion according to safety experts. Also, a borehole being drilled to check the mine's air quality was nearing the mine roof. "The bit and steel being used was not equipped to use water, which meant the bit was hot and could ignite an explosive mixture of methane," Friend told a reporter from the West Virginia Gazette. Rescue teams returned to the mine 6:22 a.m.

  

The 13 trapped miners were about 2 miles inside the mine at approximately 280 feet below ground. Five four-man teams tried to make their way through the entries which were 5.5 feet high. By 12:40 p.m. on January 3, they had reached 10,200 feet into the mine. It was believed that the trapped miners were somewhere between 11,000 to 13,000 feet from the entrance.

Two 6.25-inch holes were drilled from the surface into areas where the miners were believed to be; microphones and video cameras lowered into them for ten-minute periods did not find any signs of life. Air quality tests performed through the first hole on the morning of January 3 indicated that carbon monoxide levels in that part of the mine were at 1,300 parts per million. Officials called this "very discouraging." A third hole encountered groundwater and could not be drilled all the way down. However, the miners were trained to find a safe part of the mine and barricade themselves into it in the event of an explosion or collapse. Experts expected that a third hole, if successful, could expand the opening and provide a better way of rescuing the miners than proceeding into the mine. Miners are required to carry a Self-Contained Self-Rescuer (SCSR) that provides a one-hour supply of oxygen for evacuation. The first hint of the miners' status came around 5:00 p.m. on January 3 when it was reported that a body had been found. Because of the location of the body, those familiar with the miners and their jobs believed it was the fire boss, Terry Helms. Hours later, just before midnight, rumours spread quickly that 12 of the 13 miners had been found alive. Thirty minutes later, the rescue team told company officials that the original report was incorrect.

In the early morning of January 4, 41 hours after the incident began, 12 of the miners were found dead. Randal L. McCloy, Jr. was found alive, but in critical condition. The remaining miners were found at the working face of the second left portion of the mine, some 2.5 miles from the mine entrance, behind a "rough barricade structure", as described by Hatfield. This is the same area where drillings indicated high carbon monoxide levels.

About three hours after the reports, company CEO Ben Hatfield confirmed that McCloy was the only survivor. This was the first official report from the company since the victims were found. Soon after the first reports of survivors, ambulances and the hospital emergency room were on standby. Hatfield said that carbon monoxide levels in the area where the miners were found was in the range of 300-400 ppm when the rescue team arrived. This is near the safe threshold level to support life for 15 minutes. He said that carbon monoxide poisoning was the likely cause of death.

Those miners who lost their lives:

*Jerry  Lee Groves * Jesse L. Jones * James Bennett * Marty Bennett * Terry Helms * Tom Anderson *
* George Junior Hamner * David Lewis * Fred G. Ware Jr. * Jackie Weaver * Martin Toler Jr. * Marshall Winans *