13 feared dead after US coal mine blast

Four miners died and nine who rushed in to help were missing, feared dead, after explosions rocked America’s deepest coal mine.

If the deaths of all 13 miners are confirmed in Brookwood, Alabama, it will be the worst mining accident in the United States since 1984.

‘‘These great acts of unselfishness are eerily reminiscent of the heroes of our September 11 national tragedy,’’ said Don DeFosset, chief executive officer of Walter Industries, which owns the mine and its operator, Jim Walter Resources Inc.

‘‘These men gave their lives to help others, just as the firefighters and police of New York did nearly two weeks ago.’’

Three of the dead and the nine missing remained more than 2,000 feet underground at Blue Creek No 5 mine, company officials said.

DeFosset said there was an explosion on Sunday afternoon after a cave-in hit electrical equipment and ignited methane gas. At the time, 32 people were in the mine, six of them in the area of the explosion.

Three of the six escaped and were in a stable condition in hospital. The other three were left more than three miles from the main lift, DeFosset said.

Ten miners went to rescue them, but something sparked a second, larger explosion about 45 minutes after the first. One of 10 miners who went in to rescue others was brought out, but died at a hospital.

A second wave of rescue workers went into the mine and worked through the night but were unable to reach the area because of fires and methane gas, which is common in coal seams. Company officials said fires still burned yesterday, and it was uncertain when a team would search again.

If the deaths are confirmed, it would be the worst loss of life since December 19, 1984, when a faulty air compressor started a fire that killed 27 coal miners in Utah.

The Alabama mine is the deepest vertical shaft coal mine in North America, with operations at 2,140 feet beneath the surface, the company says. The mine employs 402 people.