2 Miners Missing, Possibly Trapped After Wall Collapses In Maryland Mine

Tuesday, April 17th 2007, 4:56 pm

By: News On 6

BARTON, Md. (AP) _ Two miners were unaccounted for and possibly trapped Tuesday hours after a wall collapsed onto heavy equipment at a surface coal mine in western Maryland, federal mining officials said.

Rescue crews from Maryland and West Virginia were on the scene at Tri Star Mining Inc. There were few details about the collapse.

``Our first priority is to rescue the trapped miners,'' said Amy Louviere, a spokeswoman for the Mine Safety and Health Administration in Washington.

Early reports pointed to a high wall collapse, she said. Louviere described the wall as being 100 feet to 125 feet high, 100 feet to 150 feet long and 50 feet to 75 feet wide.

The first call about the collapse came at 10:05 a.m., according to Brian Miller, a dispatcher with the Allegany County 911 Joint Communications Division.