Some of the Sago Mine disaster families have apparently agreed to a proposed out-of-court settlement with the company that made the OMEGA Blocks that failed during the 2006 deadly underground mine explosion in Upshur County.
The children of Sago victim Terry Helms, victim David Lewis' widow and parents and others connected with the 12 deaths at Sago were in a Charleston courtroom Tuesday for a hearing.
The court still has to approve the tentative settlement. The terms were not released.
The families sued Burrell Mining Products of New Kensington, Pennsylvania and Raleigh Mine and Industrial Supply for the failure of the blocks that were used to seal the older sections of the mine. The January 2, 2006 explosion happened behind those seals, but all were blown out with the force of the blast.
OMEGA Blocks are no longer used in underground mines. Earlier this month, the Federal Mine Safety and Health Administration came out with a new rule that underground mine operators will have to abide by when constructing seals.
Before Sago, mines only had to build seals to withstand 20 pounds per square inch of pressure or psi. The new rule is 50 psi.
