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Sago miners' kin seek truth, solutionsWest Virginia governor calls hearing a step toward 'closure'
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YOUR E-MAIL ALERTSBUCKHANNON, West Virginia (CNN) -- Relatives of coal miners killed in January's Sago Mine disaster spoke of heroes and heartbreak Tuesday as they asked an investigative panel to look for ways to ensure others don't endure similar pain. They also wanted to know exactly what happened in the mine and how they came to be told their loved ones were alive, only to find out hours later there was one survivor. "We all deserve the truth, and we deserve to know what happened on January 2," said Shelly Groves Rose, whose father, Jerry Groves, was one of 12 miners who died after an explosion at Sago near Tallmansville. "Show respect for our lost loved ones" by "answering our questions fully and completely and, most importantly, truthfully," she told the panel of mining and government representatives, including West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin. (Watch a miner's daughter explain how her dad took the sadness out of single life -- 6:29) Manchin said at the public hearing that a joint state and federal investigation into the tragedy is ongoing and that he has asked for a report to be completed by July 1. The report will detail what happened at the Sago Mine and recommend mine-safety improvements. Officials with mine owner International Coal Group have said they believe lightning sparked the explosion. Rose's uncle, John Groves, thanked the sole Sago survivor, Randy McCloy Jr., for trying to save Jerry Groves by sharing his self-contained breathing unit. "Randall, I'd like to tell you, sir, that it was a very heroic and commendable thing that you done," Groves said in an emotional statement. "Randall, to know that you shared with my brother trying to save his life by putting your own at risk tells us what type of men was in there, and I thank you." Last week, McCloy, 27, sent a letter to the families of the miners, saying that because at least four of the miners' breathing packs did not work, they had to share, but "there were not enough to go around." McCloy also wrote that the trapped miners tried in vain to alert rescuers by beating on equipment -- then accepted their fate, prayed for forgiveness of their sins and waited for death. Federal officials said they tested the breathing devices and found nothing wrong with them -- some still had air inside. Ben Hatfield, president and CEO of International Coal Group said at the hearing that stress might have led the miners to believe the packs weren't working. "In a traumatic, emotional situation, sometimes people over-breathe," he said. Jeffrey Toler, a superintendent for International Coal Group, said he was at work when he was told there was a fire at the mine. Toler, whose uncle, Martin Toler Jr., was one of those who died, entered the mine with a few other miners, but, he said, he ordered everyone to retreat because of the heavy smoke. "I offer my deepest sympathies to the families, and I regret that my decision forced us to exit that day," Toler said, his voice choking. "I relive this nightmare in my mind many times over every day. Only, in my mind, we save them every time. Regrettably, on January 2, we did not." Russell Bennett, who worked at Sago at the time of the accident that killed his father, Marty Bennett, criticized the decision to not allow rescuers to enter the mines immediately because of the risk. "There's many things that went wrong, the rescue efforts -- or should I say recovery efforts -- the response time was unacceptable," Bennett said. "The decisions made to wait not to go in because CO [carbon monoxide] in the returns -- you know, that's unacceptable. "We turn around at the Aracoma mines and we go right in knowing that we have a fire. "I hope the questions we ask today not only gives us resolution [but] helps to save the lives of present and future coal miners." Less than three weeks after the Sago incident, a fire killed two miners at the Aracoma Alma Mine No. 1 in Melville, West Virginia. (Full story) Ann Bennett Merideth described the heartbreak of learning that her father, Jim Bennett, was dead following initial reports that all 13 miners trapped underground had survived the 40-hour ordeal. "I don't think you all realize just what was harder -- having our loved ones jerked away from us again after being told they were alive and then being told later we had a minor miscommunication, or having to tell our five children" that their grandfather was dead, Merideth told the panel. 'Solace for the families'The hearings, held at West Virginia Wesleyan College in Buckhannon, began with a prayer, asking for "some solace for the families" and "some facts about this accident" to prevent others, said Davitt McAteer, former assistant secretary for the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration. McAteer, chairman of the hearing, is serving as Manchin's special adviser on the mine investigation. He said it was the first hearing into a mine accident that included the family members of victims. Federal officials said the hearing, originally scheduled for March 14, was called at the request of the victims' families. Manchin said it was intended to help the flow of information between investigators and the families. With the public hearing, he said, officials are taking "another important step to help put closure to this tragedy." The panel was seated in front of a row of photos of the 12 miners killed at Sago Mine. "There's nothing that we do here today or tomorrow, that's going to to bring back our loved ones, not one thing," Manchin said in his opening statement. He stressed that the miners "have not died in vain," noting improvements in mining safety regulations since the Sago disaster. "What we're doing is making sure that if a miner is caught in a horrible tragedy -- such as Sago, Alma or any other place in West Virginia -- the chance of us of rescuing them safely is greatly improved," the governor said. Hatfield addressed concerns about the mine's safety record at the hearing. Records show that the federal MSHA issued dozens of citations against the mine in the last half of 2005, but Hatfield said, as he has in the past, that the mine was safe. ICG, he said, didn't get full control of Sago until late 2005, although the company began managing it in June of that year. "In the meantime, clear safety initiatives were implemented; all citations were promptly addressed. And most importantly, none of those citations played any part in the accident," Hatfield said. 
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