Sign in or create a free account to curate your search content.
Most tragic disasters we associate with West Virginia have involved the coal industry, with a few notable exceptions.
Since 1883, over 21,000 miners have died in West Virginia coal mines. Early deaths were often from single accidents and not investigated. The first major disaster happened in 1886, killing 39 miners.
In 1907, the worst mining disaster in U.S. history killed at least 361 miners in Monongah, many of them immigrants and Black workers. This led to the creation of the U.S. Bureau of Mines. Disasters continued in the 1910s and 1920s.
Safety improved over time, especially after pressure from unions. In 1968, an explosion in Farmington killed 78 miners, leading to the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969.
On July 4, 1882, two steamboats—the Scioto and John Lomas—collided on the Ohio River near Mingo Island across from Moundsville. The Scioto, overloaded with more than 500 people returning from a holiday trip, sank quickly in 15 feet of water, killi...
West Virginia's first major mine explosion of the 20th century happened on March 6, 1900, at the Red Ash Mine in Fayette County. The explosion was caused by methane gas that had built up after a ventilating door was left open. When workers ignored...
On December 6, 1907, a massive explosion at the Fairmont Coal Company’s No. 6 and 8 mines in Monongah, Marion County, killed at least 361 men, making it the worst mining disaster in U.S. history. The exact cause was never proven, but it likely inv...
On April 28, 1914, an explosion at the Eccles No. 5 mine in Raleigh County killed 174 miners. A miner accidentally caused methane to build up by cutting through a barrier between two parts of the mine. An open flame ignited the gas, leading to a h...
On March 2, 1915, a deadly explosion occurred at the Layland No. 3 mine in Fayette County, killing 112 miners. The blast was so strong it killed a delivery man nearby and blew out the mine’s entrance.Seven miners were able to escape shortly after ...
On August 9, 1916, a sudden, intense rainstorm caused West Virginia’s second-deadliest flood, hitting the Cabin Creek area in Kanawha County. Nearly six inches of rain fell in under five hours, causing a powerful flash flood. The disaster destroye...
On November 6, 1923, a methane explosion at the Glen Rogers coal mine in Wyoming County killed 27 men, the worst disaster in county history. Officials said the blast was caused by an inexperienced crew that accidentally changed airflow, allowing g...
On the morning of April 28, 1924, an explosion at the Benwood coal mine south of Wheeling, in Marshall County, killed 119 miners. The blast happened just after the workday began. A miner’s open light likely ignited methane gas near a roof collapse...
On April 30, 1927, an explosion at the Federal No. 3 mine in Everettville, Monongalia County, killed 111 men. The blast, fire, and deadly gas made escape nearly impossible. Only nine miners survived, including one who returned with rescuers to sav...
The Hawks Nest Tunnel, built from 1930 to 1932, was a massive hydroelectric project in West Virginia, meant to power a Union Carbide plant. Nearly 5,000 workers, many of them Black migrants from the South, helped drill through three miles of rock....
In January 1937, the Ohio River flooded, causing the worst disaster in the Ohio Valley's history. Nearly 400 people died, a million were left homeless, and damages totaled $500 million.Heavy rain and melting snow caused the river to overflow along...
On January 10, 1940, an explosion at the Pond Creek No. 1 mine in Bartley, McDowell County, killed 91 miners. Another 47 escaped. Rescue teams searched for five days, but found no survivors.The explosion was caused by methane gas. Most miners died...
In 1942, the Scotts Run coal district near Morgantown saw three deadly mining accidents in just eight months, killing 89 miners.On May 12, 1942, a worker left a ventilation door open at the Christopher No. 3 mine, causing methane to build up. An e...
On December 15, 1967, the Silver Bridge in Point Pleasant collapsed, killing 46 people. The bridge, which opened in 1928, used a unique eyebar suspension system. At the time of the collapse, 37 vehicles with 67 people were on the bridge. The cause...
On May 6, 1968, at the Saxsewell No. 8 mine in Nicholas County, a mining machine accidentally broke into an unmapped, flooded mine, causing water to rush in. Four miners drowned, and 21 were trapped.Fifteen trapped miners were closer to the surfac...
On November 20, 1968, a gas and dust explosion occurred in the No. 9 mine in Farmington, Marion County. It caused a huge cloud of smoke and flames, and debris was thrown from the mine. While 21 miners escaped, 78 men were trapped and died. Rescue ...
On July 1, 1942, a troop transport plane crashed in McDowell County, killing 21 Army Air Corps members.On April 14, 1945, a commercial plane crashed into Cheat Mountain, killing 20 people. On April 8, 1951, a C-47 plane crashed near Kanawha Airpor...
On November 14, 1970, a Southern Airways DC-9 crashed near Tri-State Airport near Huntington, killing all 75 people on board. The victims included nearly the entire Marshall University football team, coaches, and several fans. The team had been re...
On February 26, 1972, a coal waste dam on Buffalo Creek in Logan County collapsed, releasing 132 million gallons of water, coal waste, and silt. The flood destroyed 17 communities downstream, killing 125 people and injuring 1,000. Over 500 homes w...
On April 27, 1978, a scaffolding collapse at Willow Island in Pleasants County, became one of the state's worst non-mining industrial disasters. 51 workers fell 168 feet to their deaths when the scaffolding collapsed while they were working on a c...
In late October 1985, Ttropical Storm Juan brought moisture to the Southeast. By November 3, a new storm had formed in Georgia and was moving toward West Virginia, bringing heavy rain. By November 4, rain was fallingl heavily across the region, wi...
On January 2, 2006, an explosion at the Sago Mine in Upshur County, killed 12 miners. One man died in the blast, while 11 others were trapped and died from carbon monoxide. Rescue teams reached them 41 hours later, but only one man, Randal McCloy ...
On April 5, 2010, an explosion at the Upper Big Branch mine in Raleigh County killed 29 miners and seriously injured another. It was the worst mining disaster in the state since 1968.The mine was run by Massey Energy. An independent investigation ...
On June 21, 2016, heavy rainfall of 1.5 to 2.5 inches soaked the steep hills of Clay, Nicholas, Webster, and Greenbrier counties in West Virginia. Two days later, on June 23, a powerful storm brought intense thunderstorms, causing a "thousand-year...
This Exhibit has 20 Sections