Union president says Crandall Canyon Mine accident was preventable

WASHINGTON — The Crandall Canyon Mine accident began in June, not August, and was preventable, the president of the United Mine Workers of America will tell a Senate subcommittee today.

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education will hold the first congressional hearing into the mine accident, which killed six miners and three rescuers.

"This disaster was not an act of God, but an act of man," Cecil Roberts, international president of the United Mine Workers of America, said according to a prepared statement. "It was preventable."

Roberts said when the mine operator told the Mine Safety and Health Administration in June that it would use retreat mining at Crandall Canyon near Huntington was when the disaster began.

He said the chance to save the miners was when that plan was submitted, not on Aug. 6 when the collapsed happened. "When MSHA approved the Crandall Canyon mining plan on June 15, the chance was lost," Roberts said.

He also criticized MSHA for surrendering its role as "chief communicator" as required under mining reforms passed by Congress last year. Roberts said MSHA allowed mine co-owner Murray Energy's chief, Robert Murray, to dominate the information that went out to the general public.

"This is especially troubling because much of the information Murray gave over national television and other media was wrong," according to the United Mine Workers statement.

Murray was invited to testify at the hearing today but was still handling the aftermath of the disaster and could not come to Washington, the company said.

Richard Stickler, assistant secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health, said the Crandall Canyon Mine was in compliance with the requirements needed in the June plan, but the agency was not notified of a mountain bump that occurred in March 2007. He also said the agency did provide the briefings, family support and regular updates as information was available.

"Although news outlets sometimes chose to broadcast parts of the briefings conducted by the mine operator instead of MSHA, agency never failed to be the primary communicator," Stickler said.

Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, who sits on the Appropriations Committee although not usually on this subcommittee, is expected to ask questions at today's hearing, and Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, who does not normally sit on the Appropriations Committee, also will attend.

"Once we know all that went wrong at Crandall Canyon and if there were preventable mistakes that were made, we in Congress can and should respond," according to Hatch's statement.

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