Crandall Canyon remembrance

HUNTINGTON — Steve Allred finally has a special place to go near the sealed Crandall Canyon Mine where his brother, Kerry Allred, was entombed in a collapse one year ago.

"It's amazing," Allred said about a new monument dedicated Wednesday at the mine. "It's helping me."

But moving on has been hard.

"I'll never have closure, never," said Allred, a miner for 27 years. He visited the monument with his wife Ginger. "Now I've got some place to go and feel like I can talk to my brother in a respectful way."

Families of the nine victims in last year's collapses at the mine were given their first official look at a monument that features six headstones for the men trapped in the massive Aug. 6 collapse that University of Utah seismologists said registered as a 3.9 magnitude event. The headstones bear etchings of the miners' faces and messages from loved ones.

Amid a wooded area with pines and aspens, three benches are set across from the headstones to memorialize the three workers who died Aug. 16 while trying to rescue the other men. On Wednesday people left dozens of flowers and mementos that included a figurine of a miner at rest and, at one headstone, a bottle of beer. The monument, located at the mine off of state Route-31, is now open to the public.

Allred said he'll come back often to be near his brother.

"I'm still waiting for a phone call from him and for him to come walking through the door," Allred said. "It's really tough."

For Allred, anger still surfaces over his brother's death and casting blame and harsh words come all too easily for those who he feels are responsible. Being able to move on, he said, will be difficult to do while lawsuits, whose plaintiffs include his brother's wife, linger.

Attorney Edward Havas was among those who visited the monument. His firm, having been successful in settling other mining-related cases, now represents several family members of Crandall Canyon victims. Havas said efforts are ongoing to work with defense lawyers.

"As you might imagine, there was quite a lot of emotion," Havas said about watching family members during his visit. "It's a very difficult day for all of them."

Havas praised UtahAmerican Energy, a subsidiary of Murray Energy Corp., which is owned by Robert Murray. The company provided financial support for constructing the monument.

"I applaud them for that," Havas said.

Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., who sharply criticized Murray a year ago, issued a statement Wednesday recognizing what he called an "outpouring" of love and support.

"We will never forget the families and friends of those who perished," Huntsman said. "Our actions as a state going forward will ensure that we do everything we can to make certain those who continue to mine coal will be as safe as possible."

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