US News
Funerals begin for dead miners in West Virginia coal country
By DPA
Jan 9, 2006, 19:00 GMT

Washington - Families on Sunday began burying the 12 coal miners who died underground last after an explosion at the ill-fated Sago Mine in West Virginia.

Up to six funerals were held Sunday in the mountainous state in the inland eastern United States for the men who died after an underground blast on January 2. More church services were scheduled for Monday and Tuesday.

The men apparently were poisoned by carbon monoxide that filled their mine shaft after the still unexplained mishap trapped them underground.

A sole survivor of the accident, 26-year-old Randal McCloy Jr., remained hospitalized in critical condition in Morgantown, West Virginia. He remains unconscious and under sedation as doctors continue to try to slowly restore his organ functions.

McCloy was returned to the Morgantown hospital over the weekend after being taken for two days to nearby Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for specialized treatment of carbon monoxide poisoning using a hyperbaric chamber.

The tragedy riveted national attention after a misunderstanding on Tuesday night caused families to believe that 11 of 12 minors still missing had been found alive. The report was false, and the devastated relatives were informed of the scale of the fatalities only after nearly three hours of jubilation.