Miners, their family members and neighbors spoke with the World Socialist Web Site about the conditions that led to Monday’s deadly explosion at the Upper Big Branch mine in Montcoal, West Virginia.
Tom, 52, a disabled worker who lives down the road from the Upper Big Branch mine, spoke of how Massey Energy Company controls the lives of the people in the area. “I grew up here,” he said, “and when we were kids we used to go and play on that mountain. Now it is all private property. If you go up there they want to arrest you for trespassing.
“Massey owns everything around here. People are afraid to say anything against Massey. Massey has guards who ride up and down here and threaten everyone. Even the state police are guards for Massey. They want to control everything. Just since we have been talking here, that same state trooper has ridden up and down three times. In a few minutes he will be back again.
“It is worse now than in the 1930s. My grandfather told me about the mine wars. He was up on Blair Mountain. He said they would bring in scabs by the boxcar and take them out by the flatcar. They finally starved those miners out. It’s like that again. You either do what the company wants or you don’t have a job.
“That portal has not been open very long. Massey built that portal so it would be closer to the mine face. They didn’t want the miners spending so much time getting to and from the face. I know they ran that entrance through several old mines. That is probably what caused the explosion..."
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2010/apr2010/ints-a09.shtml