Published: January 26, 2006 10:29 pm      

Manchin signs new ‘rapid response’ mine rescue bill

CHARLESTON — Families of miners victimized by two disasters this month watched Gov. Joe Manchin sign new rescue legislation Thursday with a vow to pursue any needed changes in safety laws.

Manchin signed a three-part bill focused on rescue operations he rushed through the Legislature this week and suggested God wants laws altered, if needed, to make the industry safer.

Amid muted sobs of some relatives of miners who perished in the Sago explosion in Upshur County and the Aracoma conveyor belt fire in Logan County, Manchin spoke about faith as a bulwark among West Virginians, calling it “stronger than anything I’ve ever seen.”

“We’ll accept God’s faith, but we also accept God’s willingness for us to make things better,” he said. “That’s what we do.”

Toward the goal of improving mine safety, Manchin said he has directed extra legal minds to research the code to see if any changes are in order.

The governor wasn’t certain if any suggestions would come in time for the Legislature to act before the session ends March 11.

“We’ll get it done,” he told reporters afterward.

“We’re exploring it. If we need to something, we’ll come back. You know that. We’re committed to safety.”

Manchin guided his “rapid response” bill through both chambers Monday, one that imposes a $100,000 fine, as of July 1, on any operator failing to report a serious accident within 15 minutes to the state’s emergency center in Charleston.

A second part calls for wireless tracking devices so that miners can be pinpointed at all times.

Location became a critical and time-consuming element in both disasters this month.

The third segment of the bill compels mine owners to place embedded oxygen devices strategically throughout the mine so workers have access to breathable air, given the high concentration of carbon monoxide known to build up in the labyrinths of underground installations.

“This will save lives,” John Groves, brother of Sago victim Jerry Groves, said after Manchin signed the bill and passed out commemorative pens to some 10 family members.

Groves called the bill “a wonderful thing” that will impact miners not only in West Virginia but across the nation.

Manchin met with administration officials and members of Congress Tuesday in Washington, touting his bill as one the federal government needs to enact.

He pledged to strive toward passage of his “rapid response” law at the federal level.

“We’re not blaming,” he said. “Our human nature is what it is. But our human will is something special in West Virginia. It really is.”

Manchin said he would “evaluate every rule, every law we have on the book” to see if they need tweaking or replaced.

“We want to be the benchmark that everyone looks to, how you should mine and how should you make sure that human life involved in mining is the most invaluable thing,” he said.

“You can put a price tag on a ton of coal. You can put a price tag on a longwall. But you can’t put a price tag on a miner. You can’t.”

Delorice Bragg, wife of Logan County victim Don Bragg, and sons Ricky and Don also were in the audience.

“This eases our hearts and our pain, knowing that it will save our miners some day,” Mrs. Bragg commented after the bill-signing ceremony, which attracted a large contingent of lawmakers.

Manchin said he expects a July 1 deadline for learning what set off the blast that rumbled through the Sago mine, trapping 13 miners, of whom only one survived.

Two men died less than two weeks later in the Logan County fire.

So far, Manchin told reporters, he has seen no evidence that mine inspectors have been lax in checking out West Virginia coal mines.

But at both the state and federal level, he said, efforts have accelerated to make sure other installations are safe workplaces.

“Everybody has ratcheted up,” he said.

— E-mail:

mannix@register-herald.com