Monongah << muh NAHNG guh >> mine explosion was the worst coal mining disaster in United States history. It occurred at Monongah, West Virginia, on Dec. 6, 1907. The explosion killed 362 men and boys.
Background.
The town of Monongah stands on the West Fork River in north-central West Virginia, in one of the leading coal-producing regions in the United States. At the beginning of the 1900’s, the Fairmont Coal Company owned several mines, including the No. 6 and No. 8 mines, in Monongah. Many European immigrants, especially Italians, labored there.
The No. 6 and No. 8 mines were connected underground. They had good ventilation compared with many other mines in the area. However, Monongah’s mines held a number of dangers. Hazards included poisonous gas and coal dust. When air is saturated by coal dust, a spark can ignite an explosion (see Dust explosion).
An explosion at a coal mine in nearby Fayette City, Pennsylvania, killed 34 men on Dec. 1, 1907. Inspectors said that a spark or flame ignited a mixture of flammable gases, including methane. The Fayette City explosion was the first of several deadly U.S. mine disasters during December 1907.
The Monongah explosion.
On the morning of December 6, rail cars were exiting the No. 6 mine with loads of coal. Shortly after 10 a.m., however, a grouping of cars plunged back into the mine, most likely because of a broken coupling. Soon afterward, an explosion rocked Monongah. Streets and sidewalks buckled. Some hillside buildings collapsed. Smoke poured out of the No. 6 and No. 8 mines.
Prior to the blast, workers underground had been igniting black powder to dislodge coal from the mine faces. Inspectors believed that sparks ignited methane gas mixed with airborne coal dust.
Following the explosion, large crowds gathered near the mine entrances. Rescue operations began within two hours. Late in the afternoon, Peter Urban, a miner from what is now Poland, was found near the entrance of the No. 8 mine. He was the only survivor of the blast.
Authorities reported a death toll of 362 men and boys. Some experts, however, estimated that as many as 500 people lost their lives in the disaster. About 170 of the dead were Italian immigrants.
Aftermath and memorial.
Marion County, Pennsylvania, formed a coroner’s jury to determine the cause of the miners’ deaths. The jury issued its report in January 1908. Some inspectors believed that a blown-out shot in the No. 8 mine—and not the falling rail cars—caused the initial explosion. A blown-out shot can result from the faulty placement of explosives within a pre-drilled hole in a seam of coal. Inspectors believed that the explosion ignited coal dust and spread throughout the mines. Other explanations suggested that the rail cars’ plunge into the No. 6 mine led to the explosion.
Less than two weeks after the Monongah disaster, an explosion at a coal mine in Jacobs Creek, Pennsylvania, killed 239 miners. Historians consider December 1907 the deadliest single month in U.S. mining history. More than 700 miners lost their lives during the month. In 1926, Peter Urban, the Monongah disaster’s only survivor, was killed during a mine cave-in.
Monongah held memorial services at the mine site on Dec. 6, 2007, the 100th anniversary of the disaster. Officials from Italy dedicated a large memorial bell to honor their fallen countrymen and other victims of the explosion.
