WASHINGTON, May 8 (UPI) -- The disaster that left nine people dead at Crandall Canyon Mine in Utah could have been avoided, congressional investigators say in a report.
The report, released Thursday, concluded the mining company should never have submitted a request to remove coal from the section of mine where the August 2007 collapse occurred, and that federal mining officials should not have approved the proposal because of the dangers, The New York Times reported.
Investigators said it was possible, if the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration had "known the full severity" of a March bump -- a bursting of coal and rock caused by pressure or stress -- "MSHA would not have approved the subsequent development and retreat mining of the South Barrier."
The House Committee on Education and Labor, which conducted the investigation, has asked the Justice Department to investigate whether there was a conspiracy to conceal from federal officials the condition of the mine near Huntington, Utah.
Roof supports in a section of the mine gave way August 6, leaving six miners fatally entombed. Ten days later, three miners were working as rescuers died after more tunnels fell.
