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Team CoverageToday is the anniversary of the devastating collapse of the Crandall Canyon mine in Emery County. Six miners lost their lives; three other men died trying to rescue them.
A trail near the mine now leads to a memorial to those who died. With the opening of the memorial, families of the victims now have a place to mourn and remember their loved ones.
Family members gathered at the mine this morning for a dedication of the memorial by a pastor. They then had time to reflect on the tragedy in the area of forest not far from the entrance to the Crandall Canyon mine.
It was early in the morning on Aug. 6, 2007 when the mine collapsed. For the next 10 days, rescuers worked around the clock to try and save the six men.
That intense rescue attempt failed and ended in the deaths of three rescuers.
The attorney for the family members now suing the mine company described today's memorial service. "I saw sadness and grief. I saw joy, if you can put it that way. Because the memorials, when you see it, you'll see how beautiful they are. And each one remembers each of the nine victims in a very special, meaningful way to that family. I think there's a sense of being connected to their loved one," attorney Ed Havas said.
Erick and Lucile Erickson saw the memorial were at the unveiling of the memorial today. Their son Don was the fire boss on duty on August 6th, 2007. Erick said, "I'm really happy about it, it's a beautiful place up in the trees, it's really nice."
Lucile added, "Don loved the mountains, he really did, we all did. It's awful to know he is going to stay here."
The Ericksons and other families are finding some peace today, with the dedication of this memorial. "We appreciated the feeling that was there. It helped to kind of put an end to it. I don't think there will ever be an end to it, but it helps to kind of ease the pain to know that they respected enough to do something like this for them," Erick said.
A family friend created a pin for their family, symbolic of all of the miners. It's one of the many acts of kindness they've received over the past year. "Now we can come up and sit and look at his monument and sit and think about him, which we do all the time anyway," Erick said.
There are six individual monuments honoring the six miners who were killed and are entombed inside the mine. The benches honor the three men who died in the rescue effort Aug. 16, 2007.
Emery County Sheriff Lamar Guyman says many of the family members have never stopped grieving. "[They are] visiting grave sites, visiting up the canyon. There just hasn't been a lot of happiness around here for a year," he said.
But Huntington Mayor Hillary Gordon says they are getting some help. "The love and the prayers and the thoughts that people have sent - it amazes the families. That wonderful, I call it a vibration, comes to our community with a healing feeling," she said.
The memorial to the victims of the mine collapse is open to the public during daylight hours.
There is another memorial planned that will help preserve the memories of the nine men. It is a statue of the miners being erected near Huntington, and that is scheduled to be unveiled on September 14th.
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