
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, June 1, 1995                   TAG: 9506010098
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-4   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WISE                                 LENGTH: Short

BLAST SURVIVOR, WIDOWS SUE STATE MINE AGENCY

The widows of six men killed in a 1992 coal mine explosion and the explosion's lone survivor have filed lawsuits against the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy.

The seven identical lawsuits, filed Tuesday in Wise County Circuit Court, allege that the department was negligent in failing to classify the Southmountain No.3 coal mine as ``gassy.''

The Wise County mine exploded Dec. 7, 1992, killing eight miners. Authorities concluded that a buildup of methane gas was ignited by cigarette smoking materials used by some of the miners.

S.D. Roberts Moore, an attorney with one of the two firms representing the plaintiffs, said each lawsuit seeks $75,000 in damages.

The lawsuits allege that the department had a duty to conduct a complete inspection of the coal mine at least every three months, and department inspectors were required to conduct certain examinations and tests for explosive gases and other dangerous conditions. The department also was supposed to review record books that contained safety records of inspections carried out by Southmountain.

by CNB