On Monday, November 23, 2009, a mine foreman, accompanied by another miner, was conducting the weekly examination in the tailgate bleeder entries of the Southwest A Longwall (No. 2 Longwall) bleeder system on the 3:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. shift (evening shift) at the Jim Walter Resources, Inc., No. 7 Mine. The two miners encountered a humid and unusually hot atmosphere as they traveled toward the Moving EP examination location at Crosscut 38, near the toe of the accumulated water in the bleeder. Their travel became more arduous as they progressed due to the heat, humidity, and rough terrain. Reportedly, at either Crosscut 30 or Crosscut 35, the mine foreman detected an oxygen deficient atmosphere (19.4 percent oxygen) and decided they would be unable to complete the examination due to the heat, humidity, and oxygen deficiency. Both miners retreated but became incapacitated due to the heat and humidity before exiting the bleeder.
When the miners failed to report near the end of the shift, mine officials initiated a search for both men. At approximately midnight, they were found in the bleeder near Crosscut 26. One miner was injured but responsive. The other miner was nonresponsive, not breathing, and had no pulse. Rescue operations were implemented. The injured miner was treated, removed from the area, and transported to a local hospital. The non-responsive miner was brought to the surface where he was pronounced dead (Appendix A contains the victim data sheet).
Rescue and recovery efforts were hampered by high heat, humidity, oxygen deficiency, adverse roof conditions, and rough terrain within the bleeder system. A ventilation change was completed that introduced cooler fresh air into the bleeder entries where rescuers were working. Still, several hours elapsed before the rescuers were able to remove both victims. Many of the rescuers required medical treatment after they became affected by the high heat and humidity. More than 88 persons were directly involved with the rescue and recovery efforts (Appendix B).