In the aftermath of the Crandall Coal Mine tragedies, residents of Utah\'s coal belt have mourned the losses of nine of their own and donated thousands of dollars to the families left without fathers, husbands, and sons. In individual ways, they have endeavored to come to terms with this rare, yet grim, reality of coal mining, and have mustered the nerve to continue doing what miners in Emery and Carbon Counties have done for generations: earn an honorable livelihood and produce the coal that powers the nation. Yet, the process of moving forward has been hobbled by unemployment resulting from the closures of two local coal mines and the prospect of additional lay-offs. We, the following, wish to see the economy of Emery and Carbon counties returned to the health that it enjoyed prior to the Crandall Canyon Mine tragedies and the investigations and shut downs that are occurring in their wake. We believe that mining should continue in this region and that our coal miners work under reasonably safe conditions, in both our union and non-union mines. We call on MSHA and political leaders to hear and respond to the voices of the residents of Utah\'s coal fields and to act accordingly to assist coal operators, supervisors and miners in reopening the mines made idle in the aftermath of the Crandall tragedies.

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