"This is like the CIA not talking to the FBI when we are getting attacked by terrorists," Kennedy said, referring to reports by the BLM that parts of the mine should have been sealed because "conditions were deteriorating."

Stricklin also found himself having to explain why a graduate student was involved in reviewing documents that led to the approval of Crandall Canyon's mining plan. Stricklin said the student had the first look at the plan, but a supervisor did later work.

Murray expressed concern about communications during the rescue effort. She said she is working on the Mine Disaster Family Assistance Act of 2007 to establish clear lines of communication in the aftermath of a future mine accident.

The bill would create a mine accident communication plan modeled after the National Transportation Safety Board's policies following plane crashes. The measure outlines how families of victims would receive information.

"We need to do more to make sure that if there is a mining incident, they have access to accurate and consistent information from government officials," said Murray, who criticized mine operator Bob Murray's press conferences after the Crandall Canyon accident.

The senator said miners' families deserve better than hearing life or death information "from the nightly news." Her bill would create a director of family support services at MSHA who would be a point-of-contact for all families during an emergency so that they would get information first.

The bill would also ensure that MSHA "remains the primary communicator to the mine operator, press and public and bears primary federal responsibility for rescue and recovery operations." Mine operators would also have to submit a plan on how they would handle families in the event of an emergency.

NTSB managing director Joseph Osterman told the committee that NTSB has an Office of Transportation Disaster Assistance with staff members who are trained in victim recovery and identification, mental health and emergency-response operations.

Stricklin said MSHA has no specific plan or staff in place that can give support to family members after an accident, and the MSHA employees who were sent to work with the Crandall mine families had geology and engineering backgrounds.

Family members in the hearing room Tuesday did not want to talk to the media, although five, along with Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., will testify before the House Education and Labor Committee today.

Sonny Olsen, a Utah attorney who is representing some of the families, said the hearing was "very, very difficult" for them. At least one widow left the hearing midway in tears.

"These people are still grieving," Olsen said. But they thought that coming to the hearing was worthwhile, he added, because "they are starting to see some accountability."

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E-mail: suzanne@desnews.com