Aug 23, 2006 6:37 pm US/Eastern
Sago Survivor Sues Mine Companies
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) ―
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Randal McCloy, the sole survivor of the Sago Mine accident, during his last full day at the Mountainview Regional Rehabilitation Hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia.
AP
The lone survivor of the Sago Mine disaster and the families of two victims filed lawsuits Wednesday against the mine owner and five other companies.
All three lawsuits accuse International Coal Group and a subsidiary of negligence in the operation of the mine. The suits allege that unsafe working conditions led to the Jan. 2 explosion.
Twelve men died in the blast and prolonged entrapment at the coal mine near Buckhannon, while survivor Randal McCloy Jr. was severely injured.
The lawsuits were filed in Kanawha County Circuit Court by McCloy and his wife Anna; Judy Bennett, widow of miner Alva Bennett; and Lily Bennett, widow of miner James Bennett.
Each suit seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.
Besides targeting ICG and its subsidiary, Wolf Run Mining, the suits accuse a number of mine suppliers of failing to provide proper safety equipment. Named were Burrell Mining Products Inc., Raleigh Mine and Industrial Supply Inc., GMS Mine Repair and CSE Corp.
The lawsuits filed by the Bennett families also seek an injunction to force ICG and Wolf Run to implement the recommendations of an independent investigation commissioned by Gov. Joe Manchin.
(© 2006 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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