This week’s explosion at a West Virginia coal mine raises new concerns about safety conditions at mines across the country. Workers in the coal belt, including here in Illinois, can empathize with the death of 25 miners in Montcoal. They’ve either had scares of their own, or know a neighbor or relative who’s been killed hundreds of feet below ground. To learn more about the safety factors in place in Illinois, and what can be done to prevent a tragedy like that in West Virginia, we turn to Tim Miller, an international representative for United Mine Workers of America District 12 and a longtime coal miner.

Music Button:  Bill Frisell, “Disfarmer Theme”, from the CD Disfarmer, (Nonesuch)