I had family who worked the mines, too, Kev. I know of one great-uncle who died of lung cancer, which I imagine was after a lifetime of mine work. (It might have been blacklung; my aunt's stories get confused sometimes)
Federal inspectors cited the Brooks Run mine 65 times last year and proposed penalties totaling $5,000, according to the MSHA's Web site.
Sixty-five citations and the TOTAL fine is $5,000? Honestly, if I were a businessperson with more greed than humanity in my heart I'd figure it's cheaper to pay the fines and keep breaking the law. Admittedly, there's no information yet on whether this tragedy could have been avoided, and maybe it couldn't have been- bad things do happen in dangerous jobs, and mining is VERY dangerous. But if it's due to negligence on behalf of the mining company then I hope the families can sue, and for enough money that will make the company wish they'd complied with regulations.
Which, of course, will not bring back the miners to their families. So sad.
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