Agencys Perspective Outby the Disaster

When the fire started, each miner viewed events from a different location relative to the source of ignition. To reconstruct a coherent account of the disaster, MSHA investigators needed to reconcile the observations of many different individuals who observed the fire from many different locations within the mine. 

Blake viewed events as he experienced them during his escape. Twenty-seven victims died inby the fire and thus could not testify to the events and conditions that caused their deaths. Thirteen other miners viewed events and conditions from the surface or from a location outby the fire. Their accounts would help investigators pinpoint the origin of the fire—and thus the potential source of ignition (in an overheated compressor)—but these miners could not provide the first-hand information necessary to determine positively the source of ignition. 

Nagy recognized that his narrative must achieve a unified and coherent perspective—a viewpoint not possible for any single observer underground or above ground, but possible rhetorically if he could assume the proper perspective of the actions.  

The order and time in which the events occurred is of importance to get a proper perspective oj the actions. No one person consistently and accutately noted the ptecise time fot a series of actions. However, fair correlation may be obtained by assigning teasonable tecon-structed times for events, such as stopping the belt in No. 5 Right, shutting off the electric power in the mine, and the initial use of the telephone, (p. H-7, Italics added) 

But whose perspective counts How wide should his viewpoint extend  

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