...Public disasters often cause many questions to be raised and fingers to be pointed. This most certainly holds true for the catastrophic explosion of Centralia Mine No. 5 on the afternoon of March 25, 1947, and the violent and untimely deaths of the 111 Centralia Coal Company miners. While many played a role in the unfolding of this tragic disaster, focus is repeatedly brought back to Driscoll Scanlan, an Illinois mine state inspector. Were there other courses of action he could have pursued in the management and security of the mine, and what were the driving factors behind Scanlan’s decision concerning the law he was sworn to uphold and the interest of public good? Those are questions that if answered could help to uncover how this tragedy could have been prevented. For a city of such humble beginnings, established by the railroad via a land grant in 1853, no one could have guessed that Centralia, Illinois, would face such devastation and tragedy less than a century later (Hartley and Kenney, 2006). The city of Centralia—throughout most of its history, experienced slow economic growth, progressed steadily and changed gradually, which provided a stable environment for the community and its growth. As any typical Midwestern town did, Centralia saw many highs and lows within the city’s primary business and industry. Those highs and lows of the coal mining, farming and railroad business helped Centralia become a balanced yet prosperous town and with the exception of the...
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...and disadvantages of recruitment media. Many people use media today to recruit new employees. The advantages are: a better variety of candidates for jobs, The disadvantages are: Outline I. The Accident at Great Bear. This section is a brief recap of the accident itself, i.e., who was involved and what happened. II. Rethinking Accident Causes. This section provides definitions for latent and proximal accident causes. Research by Karl Weick and James Reason is described here. III. Rethinking the Critical Period. This section examines other similar disasters and describes what led to the crisis. The World Trade Center, Hurricane Katina, Herald of Free Enterprise, Estonia, and the West Virginia Sago Mine disaster are all described. IV. Failures in the Great Bear Wilderness Disaster. This section identifies three possible failures that escalated the crisis into a disaster. A. The Breakdown of Coordinated Action. This section uses interviews and quotes from authorities to show how coordination broke down at Great Bear. B. Rush to Judgment. This section shows how authorities made mistakes due to the pressure of coming to a...
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...Hickman ( a coal miners son) who is inspired to build a rocket after the Russian launch of the first artificial satellite (Sputnik) into orbit. The film definitely focuses on the course theme of being a social outcast. This is explored in the film through three people, John Hickman (Homers Father), the town of Coalwood and Mr.Turner (Homers principle). Firstly, John Hickman, father of Homer Hickman and a coal miner at the Coalwood mines in West Virginia, socially outcasts his son. Why? Because John doesn’t agree with his son building a rocket. This is explored through Homers father getting in multiple fights with his son. John called Homer many hurtful words for example a minis and a thief. John never wanted to go watch Homers rocket launch, he never agreed with anything that Homer wanted to do. Homer’s father wanted him to work in a coal mine not build rockets. Homer’s father is thrilled when Homer decides to go work in the coal mine after John gets hurt at work. Homer decides to quit school, quits making rockets and go into the coal mine. After John is out of the hospital and is able to go back to work, Homers mother want him to go back to school. Homer tells him mom that he’s not going back to school and John agrees with Homer. Although John is thrilled that Homer quit building rockets, the family is finally happy and everything is good, Homer decides to go back to school to build rockets and win what his goal was the entire movie, The Science Fair. Homer and his friends...
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...------------------------------------------------- Crisis Communication ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Assignment #3 ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Sago Mine Disaster ------------------------------------------------- By abhimanyu karnatak Situational Analysis Background and overview on the crisis On 2nd of January 2006, at Wolf Run Mining company’s Sago Mine near Buckhannon, West Virginia, at 6:26 am it was believed that methane explosion in the recently sealed area of mine had prompted. This ignition blew off seals and impelled smoke, debris, dust and lethal carbon monoxide in to the area of work. With 29 coal miners underground, 16 miners managed to escape however, 13 of them were trapped for nearly 2 days awaiting rescue and trying every bit to survive and escape. The disaster claimed the life of 12 miners who suffocated to death because of lack of breathable air but only one “ Randal Mc Cloy“ had succumbed from the deathly incident. The Cause Among the Federal Investigators, MSHA who started investigations on the cause immediately after the explosion pointed out that the most plausible cause of ignition source of methane is the “lightning”. They also quoted that, the explosion resulted forces...
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...This disaster in the Chilean copper mine, a disastrous downfall in one of the shafts of the mine has left 33 miners trapped 310 meters below the ground. The outcomes of the company and their reaction to the disaster would eventually define how the world, their audience, would see them. It turns out to be very crucial that the spokesperson of the company who issues updates and information to the public is careful and sensitive to the families. The audience the company would be reporting to would be made up of the news correspondence, the victim’s families, and the media. Not only would the company spokesperson have to keep the reputation and point of view of the mining company in one piece, they would have to issue specific and straightforward information that would not always be in the greatest interest of the company’s position. All though in the beginning the company may not have a great extent of information, it’s necessary for them to inform the families with as much information as soon as possible. This would consist of any information as to what is taking place in the mine while the miners are still trapped. When communicating we need to have some emotion and sympathy than just the facts of what is going on inside the mine. With all the families wanting to be inform that everything is okay and everyone is doing his or her best to get the situation under control. When speaking to any type of media they are concerned only about the facts. When a company needs to pass information...
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...Knowing Your Audience and Communication Release Patricia Brooks BCOM/275 Date Melinda Maldonado Knowing Your Audience Paper and Communication Release Knowing the audience and using the right communication release is vital in any catastrophe. For example, the Chilean copper mine disaster in South America, which left 33 miners trapped 300 feet underground fighting for their lives. Chilean miners had limited water, food, oxygen, and the chance for survival was slim. Fortunately, in this catastrophe the tears turn into screams of joy because all 33 Chilean miners were rescued (Weik, 2010). The Beginning of the Communication Process There are many factors to think about when a situation like this happens. Families must be notified, employees are inform, and questions form the media as well as the families’ has to be addressed. Communication process is vital and must be handled accordingly with the intended audience in mind. In addition, forming the right communication release to the people in the audience and those who have different roles in the media is equally important. This will allow the company speaker to have effective message. If the audience is not taken into consideration when conveying a message, the communication could be lost, misunderstood, or incomplete (Cheesebro, & Rios, 2010). Potential needs of the Families Communication must be designed with the audience in mind therefore, when releasing information to the victim’s families on their conditions...
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...Knowing your Audience: Close your eyes Doug McGill BCOM/275 August 19, 2012 Eric Graves Close your eyes imagine that you are trapped in complete darkness with little to no room surrounded by 32 other men, the fear of no escape from a room smaller than the size of an average classroom, and you are half a mile underground with no way out. Unless, someone experienced this nightmare firsthand this would be difficult for anyone to imagine. This was the terrifying and exhausting reality for 33 Chilean gold miners August 5, 2010 through October 9, 2010. There are two difficult types of communication that the San Esteban Company faced. The Company had to address the families of the trapped miner’s and the rest of world. The considerations of roles the Company played when addressing the two different audiences will be discussed. And what actions were taken before and after the message was delivered to ensure that the messages were received as they were intended for each audience. Addressing the Audience Everyone experiences fear in their own way, but the thought of being trapped half a mile underground, 2600 feet, almost 900 meters is a terrifying thought for anyone. The miner’s from the San Esteban Mining Company lived through the fear of claustrophobia for 70 days in almost complete darkness. It took 17 days before the miners were discovered to be trapped and still alive. The miners made two days of food and water last 17 days. The miners were discovered through constant...
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...Knowing Your Audience Disaster can strike at anytime, anywhere. It is important to have plan in place and that includes having one to release certain information to the public. Companies should be aware of their audience and what information should be released in order not to cause a panic or media circus. The Chilean copper mine disaster is a prime example of why knowing your audience and the information released is very important. Dealing with an audience like the one involved in this disaster, attention to detail is key. Distributing the wrong information can lead to conflict and stress. Being calm and sending information fast, effectively, and often to that audience shows respect and affection to the families and workers. During the Chilean copper mine incident, the company was both praised and criticized for the way it handled the situation. First and foremost, a company should analyze the situation. After gathering information, members should discuss the cause and effects if certain information is released to the public. After being analyzed, it should be presented in a manner where it both informs the public and brings hope and relieves stress. This includes distributing the information to the employees affected by the situation as well. During the Chilean copper mine incident, the company withheld certain rescue effort information to the trapped miners. Nick Kanas, a professor at the University of California at San Francisco said it is important to create strong bonds...
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...Chilean Mine Collapse Garret Rife BCOM/275 October 9, 2011 Randi Plante Chilean Mine Collapse On August 5, 2010 one of the worst things fathomable for the 121-year-old Copiapo copper mine located in Chile occurred. The mine collapsed on itself trapping 33 unfortunate miners in the process. They were trapped with no escape route open to them and were left to the perils of the unforgivable crawl space that they would now call home. "The buried men, who became known as "Los 33" ("The 33"), were trapped 700 meters (2,300 ft) underground and about 5 kilometers (3 mi) from the mine's entrance via spiraling underground service ramps"(“2010 Copiapo mining accident,” 2010). The mining company would now be faced with communicating the tragedy within not only the company, but with the trapped miner's families and loved ones. With such an audience at hand, careful consideration on delivery methods is of great importance. When a tragedy occurs, loved ones will often lose their cognitive and logical thinking abilities and essentially go into panic mode. One must collect data that will help to deliver the material at each level of understanding in an audience with such diverse roles. We are dealing with a different culture and background from our own with many different beliefs as well. The needs of the affected families involved with the "Chilean Mine Collapse" were assuredly sensitive and great caution was needed in communicating with them. Imagine a young...
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...communicates information to a group or organization. Knowing the audience is even more important when a company has to deal with the fallout following a disaster. The disaster of the Chilean copper mine in South American is one example of where knowing your audience was a very important factor. In a Chilean copper mine, an unfortunate collapse in one of the shafts of them mine had left 33 miners trapped 310 meters (1017 feet) below the ground. The reactions of the company and their response to the disaster would ultimately determine how the world (their audience) would view them. It became very important that the company representatives who would release information and updates to the public know their audience well. The audience the company would be presenting to would consist of the releases to the press, news correspondence and most important, the families of the victims. Not only would the representative of the company have to keep the reputation and outlook of the mining company intact, they would have to release accurate and truthful information and that would not always be in the best interest of the company’s reputation. The collapse would not only affect the 33 miners trapped underground, the family members of those 33 men would have to wait in agony waiting on word of their family members fate. When a disaster of this magnitude happens, a company has the responsibility of keeping the family members informed every step of the rescue process, above the news and press...
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...needs can mean the difference between triumph and disaster in how listeners receive and decode information. On August 5, 2010, the main entrance into the San José Mine, near Copiapó, Chile, collapsed trapping 33 miners approximately 2,300 feet underground for more than 2 months. The miners’ family members, and by extension, the world, grew increasingly concerned about the well-being of the men as there was no way of determining the actual state of the miners initially. On August 22, 2010, after digging a small hole through the roof the mine’s shelter area, a message was sent to the earth’s surface, via note, stating that everyone was alive. From the onset of the accident, the Chilean government recruited the services of mining industry professionals and on October 13, 2010, the first miner was lifted out of the mine. All 33 men were safely retrieved in less than 24 hours and reunited with their families. The way in which the Chilean government and the enlisted professionals handled the dissemination of information, proved successful in how they wanted the viewing and listening public to receive the messages. When delivering a pertinent presentation, there are many factors to consider as they relate to the people and their roles in the audience, for example, age, educational and economic backgrounds, gender, occupation, political, religious, or moral beliefs and socioeconomic roles (University of Phoenix, 2009-2010). The Chilean mining accident called for informative speeches...
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...communicates information to a group or organization. Knowing the audience is even more important when a company has to deal with the fallout following a disaster. The disaster of the Chilean copper mine in South American is one example of where knowing your audience was a very important factor. In a Chilean copper mine, an unfortunate collapse in one of the shafts of them mine had left 33 miners trapped 310 meters (1017 feet) below the ground. The reactions of the company and their response to the disaster would ultimately determine how the world (their audience) would view them. It became very important that the company representatives who would release information and updates to the public know their audience well. The audience the company would be presenting to would consist of the releases to the press, news correspondence and most important, the families of the victims. Not only would the representative of the company have to keep the reputation and outlook of the mining company intact, they would have to release accurate and truthful information and that would not always be in the best interest of the company’s reputation. The collapse would not only affect the 33 miners trapped underground, the family members of those 33 men would have to wait in agony waiting on word of their family members fate. When a disaster of this magnitude happens, a company has the responsibility of keeping the family members informed every step of the rescue process, above the news and press...
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...Lexia Stiell March 24, 2014 San José, Chile - Mine Collapse When delivering any message to an audience it is important to take the gender, ethnic make-up, age and relation to the reason for the message into consideration. When it comes to the Chilean mine collapse, according to Yaxley, a reporter, the timely deliverance of the news concerning the situation was a triumph. She contributes the triumph to the leadership style of Chilean president Sebastian Pineda. His government took control after the mine’s owners were unable to respond to the mine collapse. The fact that they were able to provide open access to the family, shows that the Chilean government and public relations personnel were attempting to make the best of a not so good situation. The public relation team was able to deliver the types of information the families wanted to know in a timely manner. Families of the victims wanted to know the physical and mental condition of their love one. They wanted to know the likely hood of the miners surviving their ordeal. The press release to the family had to let the family know that everything humanly possible was being done to rescue the miners. In the example of the workers in the Chilean mine collapse, the families needed accurate information as soon as it became available. They also needed a message that showed genuine concern and empathy for those affected by the collapse. Not knowing if a loved one is dead or alive, for any amount of time is a stressful...
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...Chilean Copper Mine Collapse BCOM/275 Disaster Strikes a Chilean Mine On August 5, 2010, employees of Minera San Esteban Primera woke up, stretched out, bathed, ate breakfast, and walked around their assuredly modest homes. They said their casual goodbyes to family as they headed off to yet another dark day at work deep in the San Jose copper mine in northern Chile. Little did they know it would be the last time for nearly two months they would see the light of day. These same blessings of life they most likely took for granted earlier that day - to be able to stretch out, to bathe, to eat, and to walk around in the comfort of their own homes - would be taken from them unexpectedly later that same day. Some time around the miners' lunch time on August 5, 2010, the upper galleries of the private copper mine collapsed trapping the miners. Many on the outside feared the worst. After all, when the collapse occurred the miners should have been in or near the hazard zone on their way out for their lunch break. Furthermore, with limited necessities such as food, water, and oxygen it was unknown whether the miners could have survived. "Liliana Ramirez, the wife of one of the oldest minders trapped, said she had faith all along that they were still alive and that she knew that her husband would never let his fellow workers perish" (Hughes, 2010). Families of the missing miners, like Liliana Ramirez, started gathering and camping out at the mine's surface since...
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...Thirty-three workers became trapped during a Chilean copper mine collapse near the northern town of Copiapó, Chile on August 5, 2010. The tragedy captured the attention of media, and audiences, around the world alike. Once reported, hopes and prayers went out the trapped workers, the workers families and the rescue workers from the hearts of many. During severe heart-wrenching incidents, such as this, it is important to consider the roles of those involved. The potential needs of the workers, whose lives were at stake, and the needs of their families become extremely important when discussing the incident. It is important to know how to address everyone involved while considering their needs. Waking up on August 5, 2010 was no different from any other day for these workers. The miners kissed and hugged their family members before heading off to work in the Chilean copper mine. The day had been the same as the day before for the miners. Close to the time for the miners to take their lunch break, the tunnel collapsed leaving them trapped 300 meters below ground level. Other miners feared that the thirty-three miners still inside the mine were in the disaster zone when the collapse happened. The workers that were trapped had to have been scared not knowing if they were ever going to be able to see loved ones again. For 16 days, the workers had no communication from the outside world, and no way for the outside world to communicate back to them. Fear, itself is scary, but fear...
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