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The Porter Tunnel Mine Disaster, 1977 (3)

Articles from the West Schuylkill Herald, a weekly newspaper published in Tower City, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, beginning March 17, 1977 and concluding March 31, 1977. The articles are related to the mine accident that occurred at the Kocher Coal Mine on March 1, 1977, and the attempts at rescuing the trapped miners and recovering the bodies of those who died.

The photo above is of the Porter Tunnel entrance where the disaster occurred.

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From the West Schuylkill Herald, March 17, 1977:

With home of finding the remaining five trapped miners in Porter Tunnel alive dwindling with each succeeding day, families of the miners continue to remain at the mine site.  With them are the Salvation Army, Red Cross and the fellow miners and mine officials who are endeavoring to locate the men.

Work on the main level gangway proceeded slowly this week.  Damage to the timbering, fall of rock and coal, and the mass of tangle wreckage left by the rampaging waters that flooded the mine March 1 [1977] created a barrier that was difficult to remove.

The congestion occurred near the 13th chute.  New timbering had to be installed to make the area safe for workers who are digging toward the remaining five miners.

Wednesday morning the men have approximately 240 feet to clear before they reach the 18th chute where it is believed the bodies of other five trapped miners are.

Ronald Adley, 37, found refuge in the upper reaches of chute 17.  his tapping was heard by workers inside the mine the day after the accident.  For five days crews worked round the clock to free him.  He was found to be in good condition, but was taken to the Pottsville Hospital where he was first put in intensive care and then moved to a regular hospital room.

Four men died in the disaster.  The body of Gary Lee Klinger, 19, RD2 Hegins, was found the first day and the body of Philip Sabatino, 50, Hegins, was uncovered the second day after the water broke through the mine.

Following the release of Adley, the workers found the bodies of Ralph Renninger, 40, Donaldson, and Donald Shoffler, 41, Gordon.

The men entombed in the mine are Ronald Herb, 32, and Dennis Morgan, 30, both of Valley View; Mark Kroh, 38, Good Spring; and John Moyer, 44, and Timothy Grose, Ashland.

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From the West Schuylkill Herald, March 24, 1977:

PROGRESS SLOW IN CLEARING DEBRIS AT DISASTER SITE

Work at the Porter Tunnel Mine disaster site to recover the five men still underground is continuing, but progress is very slow in clearing the debris from the gangway and heading, with men working around the clock.

However, drilling of probe holes has been discontinues as of Friday when the 14th hole was completed and television cameras and listening devises were lowered into the hole with negative results.  John Shutack, an official with the federal Mining Enforcement and safety Administration, said probe holes were drilled in every possible location with no response detected by either the camera or listening devices, and to drill more would be a duplication of efforts. He also explained that the drilling adds to the hazards of the men working underground in the mine.

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From the West Schuylkill Herald, March 31, 1977:

LAST FIVE MINE VICTIMS FOUND ALL DIED INSTANTLY ON MARCH 1

The last sad chapter in the mine accident at the Kocher Coal Company Porter Tunnel came to a conclusion with the recovery of the bodies of the remaining five victims who perished in the rush of water into the tunnel from nearby abandoned workings.

With the recovery work continuing twenty-fo9ur hours per day eve since the accident on March 1st [1977], and facing gigantic problems in hope of reaching some of them alive, the rescue workers found three of the bodies, Ronald Herb, Dennis Morgan and John Moyer late Monday evening and the other two, Mark Kroh and Timothy Grose late Tuesday evening.

Deputy Coroner Stewart Dreisigacker of Tower City said death in all five cases was instant when the rush of water flooded the mine.

The relatives of the victims who kept a constant vigil and the rescue workers have gone home.  Now all that remains is a commission investigation by State officials to determine the cause of the accident.

Of 10 miners who were caught in the rush of water on March 1, only one, Russell Adley, of Tower City was found alive and rescued on Sunday, March 6.  The other nine perished.

The first dead miner, Gary Lee Klinger, of Hegins RD2, was removed from the mine on the day of the disaster, March 1 [1977]; the second, Philip Sabatino, of Hegins, on March 2; two others, Ralph “Henry” Renninger of Donaldson and Donald E. Shoffler of Gordon on Sunday, March 6, the same day Adley was rescued.

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News articles and photos obtained through Newspapers.com.

Corrections and additional information should be added as comments to this post.

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