2006 Deadly Sago Mine Disaster: A Case Study

The Sago Mine was located in Sago, West Virginia, near the Upshur County seat of Buckhannon. After being closed for the holidays, on January 2, 2006 the mine would restart operation. At 6:30 a.m. there was an explosion at the mine. This explosion trapped thirteen miners for hours and only one would survive the horrific event.

Loss of home, loved ones, independence, identity, and a sense that the world is no longer safe are all central to the experience of a disaster such as the 2009 Victorian ‘Black Saturday’ bushfires. Most people will suffer a degree of distress in the short-term and only some will have more chronic long-term conditions such as PTSD and the impact of trauma can be felt by those not directly affected. The social workers at the community centre providing counselling services for those affected can use the information and research gathered here to focus on recovery that is holistic to enable affected communities to return back to a ‘normative’ society. Some of the key knowledge garnered from the literature

Major natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes and floods often precipitate sudden emergencies, which have significant impact on all domains of life for affected populations. Children are a particularly vulnerable group to the effects of natural disasters, with unique physical, developmental, and psychosocial characteristics that place them at high risk for adverse outcomes (Murray, 2011). Some of the consequences for children after natural disasters include physical insecurity, poor living conditions and displacement, and disruption to community life. Numerous children may also be left orphaned after the loss of one or both parents. The aftermath of natural disasters place children at risk for adverse physical but

These men and women risked their lives to try to save the thousands of men, women, and children trapped inside the Murrah building. In assumption people would think this traumatic experience of trying to recover lives after the explosion would not only be very heartbreaking, but very traumatic also. Surprisingly, from all the rescue workers only 13% (24/181) were diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (North). A test was approved and ran by the Washington University School of Medicine Institutional Review Board (North). This test involved the first group of firefighters who were involved with the bombing victims (North). These firefighters are the ones who helped recover bodies and body parts from the rubble of the bombing (North). “Two-thirds (68%) reported feeling somewhat or very upset by either or both of these activities, although many (36%) described removing the bodies as providing a sense of relief and closure to their evacuation work. Firefighters acknowledged feeling somewhat or very upset by contact with body parts (54%) and body fluids (36%), but encounters with children’s remains (72% of total sample) had the highest rating of associated upset”

In September 11, 2001, the United States recalled this day as a day of tragedy, sadness, terrorism, and trauma. The 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center not only took the lives of people, but it also gave the individuals who survived and experienced the event post traumatic stress disorder after the event. This topic has been studied and interviews have been conducted with those individuals who had Unmet Mental Health Care Need 10 - 11 years after the tragic event collecting the results from 2011 - 2012 World Trade Center Health Registry. Unmet Mental Health Care Need 10 - 11 years after the 9/11 terrorist

Emergency rescue personnel witnessed the loss of loved ones, furthermore during recovery and rescue efforts they were limited in the amount of debriefing and clinical mental support they received. Priorities at the time focused on saving lives, while mental deterioration was taking place in many simultaneously. “A study published in the Mount Sinai Journal of Medicine found a 71.8% prevalence of PTSD among exposed first responders as opposed to 51.4% among their unexposed counterparts” (Bills et al., 2008). In a 9-year longitudinal cohort study with data gathered from 27,449 participants, including a population of police officers and firefighters among other rescue workers; the cumulative results yielded a 9.3% incidence of PTSD, 8.4% panic disorder, and 7.0% depression, with the higher rates found among those with direct exposure (Wisnivesky et al., 2011). Besides risk factors that contribute to developing PTSD, underestimating its pathophysiological effects can exacerbate the condition. According to Boscarino and Adams (2009), even though 90% of adults have experienced at least a traumatic event in their life; only a small percentage develop PTSD. This further validates the concept of the influence of underlying risk factors post

Fritz, Charles. Disasters and Mental Health: Therapeutic Principles Drawn from Disaster Studies. Disaster Research Center, University of Delaware, 1996.

This event made an immense difference in peoples’ lives who were in Victoria when this occurred with 173 people killed, 414 injured, 2100 homes destroyed and 7562 people displaced. This event did not physically affect myself, although mentally, it did make me realise how dangerous and serious fires can be.

From what happened during Hurricane Katrina and now the oil spill, speakers Sharon Gauthe and Gracie Scire are really trying to stress the importance of the need for additional community mental health services. The citizens are trying to cope with physical ailments and stress and even though the health agencies issued personal protective equipment guidelines for response workers and created a registry of these newly trained personnel, they missed the crucial window for screening their baseline physical health before the workers were directly exposed to oil products; Industry and

Disasters are totalizing events, impacting and influencing every aspect of a community when they occur. As the anthropology of disaster grows, both in the number of publications and the number of researchers, the scope of topics related to disasters will also grow. Economic implications, vulnerable populations, and human ecology already contribute heavily to the

In the aftermath of September 11, 2001, there were an array of confusion, anger, anxiety, fear, and hatred. Police officers and firefighters who responded to the events of 9/11 experienced delayed emotional reactions so they can accomplish their tasks. These first responders develop an ability to contain their emotions so they can deal with it later (Sauter & Carafano, 2012). Video images of two hijacked U.S. commercial airliners plowing into the twin towers were continuously replayed for days on local and national news outlets. The United States was put on the highest state of alert and all federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies around the U.S. responded to the crisis. Many innocent lives were taken from the 9/11 incident

Natural disasters bring both the good and bad aspects of humans. Some companies take advantage of the situation of desperation while generating a profit at the expense of others pain and suffering. A research study conducted in the aftermath of the 1999 Oklahoma tornado activity. The data reveals how the

It is also known that “emotional baggage” can be carried far-past the career of first response personnel, some may fall victim quickly where others may show latent signs of suicidal tendencies or worse yet, become a public danger later in life. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), diagnosed in first response personnel, is growing out of control (Reagan, 2015). The sad cost of losing even one person during or post-disaster is life altering, regardless if it is a disaster victim or a first responder, and it reflects poorly on supervisors and those ultimately in charge. First response personnel should save lives, not lose them or fall victim to the disaster itself.

Any time that the federal agency that responds to disaster events handles such situations there is likely to be a significant loss of life due to the disaster event. This makes a requirement that responders know how to deal with the psychological issues and challenges that are present. It is reported that mental and behavioral health, "in the context of disasters and emergencies, include a wide range of interrelated factors psychological (emotional, cognitive, behavioral), psychological and social that influence people's ability to cope with and recover from extreme situations." (Disaster Mental Health Subcommittee of the National Biodefense Science Board, 2010, p.4) Stated as examples of such issues are those of "fear and anxiety resulting from safety concerns, the death of loved ones, separation from family members and uncertainty as to their fate, and loss of homes and possessions; noncompliance with government directives resulting from loss of confidence in authorities; breakdown in community social

Corporate social responsibility is a controversial matter that regarding businesses’ ethics especially those that only obeys the law and does not care for the social harm they have caused. There are numerous occasions where the companies harms the society and communities more than the benefits they provide. The case of Samarco 2015 Mine Disaster is one of the occasion that occurred due to negligence as they chose not to follow a single safety regulation of the dam which caused a calamity that damaged the ecosystem and affect the people living in the state of Minas Gerais.