Three Hours In The Dark

Talking about mine explosions here today, and I was reminded of this one, from Vanessa Gezari: SAGO, W.Va. - No one could say who started it. All they knew was that someone in the crowd at the Sago Baptist Church that night hollered, "There's 12 of 'em alive!"

For 41 hours, since an explosion early Monday trapped 13 miners underground, the church had been a refuge for relatives, friends and anyone else in search of a piece of fried chicken or the latest news. Now, as Tuesday night gave way to Wednesday morning, the small white chapel became a place of wild imaginings and ecstatic prayer.

From midnight to 3 a.m., people from this hilly patch of West Virginia thought about what they would say and do when the miners stood in front of them. They made plans and promises. They worshiped a God who worked miracles and answered prayers.