"The Upper Big Branch mine in West Virginia was plagued by persistent problems with airflow in the weeks and months before a massive and deadly explosion in April, an NPR News investigation has found.
NPR has also learned that the FBI is focused both on the airflow problems and on possible tampering with safety monitors as part of its criminal probe.
The actual cause of the blast remains a mystery six weeks after 29 mineworkers died at the underground coal mine in Montcoal, W.Va. It was the nation's worst mining disaster in 40 years. "
Howard Berkes and Frank Langfitt report for NPR's All Things Considered May 17, 2010.
See Also:
Littering? "Judge Sets $100,000 Bail for Anti-Coal Activists" (DeSmogBlog)
Source: NPR, 05/18/2010
