Roger Foster yesterday clears till from a well-drilling rig as a bore hole is dug near Sago, West Virginia, yesterday, to assist 13 miners trapped after an explosion on Monday. - REUTERS
TALLMANSVILLE, West Virginia (Reuters):
RESCUE WORKERS raced against time last night with fading hopes of saving 13 trapped coal miners, and officials said it would take a miracle for the men to be found alive.
There had been no communication with the miners since they were trapped after an explosion at 6:30 a.m. (1130 GMT) on Monday at the Sago mine in central West Virginia.
Officials, who reported poisonous gas in the mine, feared yesterday offered the last hope of finding survivors.
HOPING AND PRAYING
"We still pray for miracles in West Virginia. We still believe in miracles," Governor Joe Manchin told reporters at the coal mine. "We are hoping for that miracle."
Rescuers had dug 11,200 feet into the mine. They were expected to take three to five hours to advance the last 1,000 to 2,000 feet and reach the place where they hoped the miners found refuge from lethal gases.
"In a perfect scenario what we would find there would be a safe crew of men who barricaded themselves in, and by some ingenious manner managed to maintain a safe breathing environment," said Ben Hatfield, president of International Coal Group Inc., which owns the mine.
"Obviously with each hour that passes, the chances of that being the outcome are not good."
