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Forum Rank:: Advanced Member
Joined: 3/7/2009
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 Courrières Mine Disaster (1906)The Courrières mine disaster, the worst mining accident in European history, killed 1,099 miners in Northern France. It is generally agreed that the majority of the deaths and destruction were caused by an explosion of dust which swept through the mine, however, it has never been ascertained what caused the coal dust to ignite in the first place. A group of thirteen survivors, later known as the rescapés, was found by rescuers twenty days after the explosion. How had they survived? More...
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Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 9/10/2009
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This is a fine mine disaster story, but my favorite is Richard Brautigan's Springhill Mine Disaster.
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Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 3/16/2009
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Favorite? Is that really a word we want to use when describing a disaster that caused the deaths of over 1,000 people? I get what you're saying, but poor choice of words perhaps?
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Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 9/10/2009
Posts: 340
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Location: United States
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Michal, you don't love me anymore?
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Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 3/16/2009
Posts: 1,244
Points: 3,388
Location: United States
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I love everyone (as long as they're nice). There was a playful tone in my head when I wrote my response, which clearly doesn't translate on screen (one of the major failings of technology). My intention was merely to point out the irony of using that word in this context. It certainly wasn't meant in an accusatory way...which, from the tone of your response, I think you understood.
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Rank: Advanced Member
Joined: 9/10/2009
Posts: 340
Points: 1,020
Location: United States
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Yes, Michal, I understand. The truth is, I kind of flippantly responded to this one because I didn't anticipate other responses/possibly even readers. It happened a long time ago, and was unfortunate - right around the same time the SF earthquake happened...which, oddly enough, didn't teach anyone that maybe you shouldn't (re)build a metropolis on five fault lines...I should have kept quiet, though, because one really shouldn't treat anyone's death lightly, no matter how long ago it happened.
Here's the truth, though: Brautigan's Springhill Mine Disaster makes for a lot better read [unfortunately, it has been out of print for some time now]
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Rank: Advanced Member
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Location: UK
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It is fair to say about “the rescapés”; “They had the fortitude to resist the lure of ease and luxury”.
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