MONTCOAL, W.Va. — Levels of noxious gas dropped Thursday in a coal mine where 25 workers died in an explosion, giving rescuers hope that they might be able to get inside soon to look for four missing miners.
Teams spent more than four hours working their way through the Upper Big Branch mine by rail car and on foot in the morning but had to turn back because of an explosive mix of gases in the area they needed to search.
Crews at the surface resumed drilling in an effort to get fresh air into the mine. Gov. Joe Manchin said Thursday evening that the levels were near those considered safe.
Rescue teams had made it within 500 feet of an airtight chamber with four days worth of food, water and oxygen where they hoped the miners might have sought refuge Monday after the worst U.S. mining disaster in more than two decades.
Chris Adkins, chief operating officer for mine owner Massey Energy Co., said that the rescue teams were angry when told to abandon the mission but that their safety was paramount. The Associated Press
