The Wilberg Mine Fire
A fire at the Wilberg coal mine in Utah on December 19, 1984, killed 27 people.
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The Event
A fire at the Wilberg coal mine in Utah on December 19, 1984, killed 27 people. The disaster became a major event in American mining-safety history.
The Wider Story
Smoke and the underground environment created deadly conditions. Investigation examined the fire, the mine layout and the protections available to workers.
Putting the Event in Perspective
The event was a mine fire rather than a gas explosion.
Reading the Historical Record
A reconstruction should focus on the site and investigation without inventing a rescue or showing workers in their final moments.
About the Historical Recreation
The accompanying visual is an illustrative reconstruction: a distant Utah coal-mine entrance in winter 1984 followed by an anonymous safety-investigation desk. It is not authentic archival footage, an eyewitness record or additional evidence for the event.
Sources
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