Martha Rial, Post-Gazette Anna McCloy, left, cries for her husband, miner Randal McCloy Jr., as she waits for word on his fate with her mother, Eleanor Green, center, and mother-in-law, Tanbar Flint, right. The McCloys have two small children. Click photo for larger image.

TALLMANSVILLE, W.Va. -- As a severe thunderstorm moved through this mining town early today, some residents felt the ground quiver.

At 6:31 a.m., power failed at the Sago coal mine and shortly thereafter, a group of miners phoned the surface and said they were evacuating after an explosion.

From a second group of 13 miners, believed to be nearly two miles in and 260 feet underground, there was no word.

As of late last night, as rescue efforts intensified and family members gathered and waited nervously in a church, there was still no word.

"They told us to pray," said Judy Helms, sister-in-law of trapped miner Terry Helms.

The explosion left dangerous levels of lethal gases that held rescuers at bay for nearly 12 hours.

Hundreds of family members, friends and colleagues of the trapped miners gathered at Sago Baptist Church, a short distance from the mine, to keep vigil. Rescue crews and equipment were marshaled from around the region.

	Martha Rial, Post-Gazette A man who escaped the explosion at Sago Mine this morning talks with other miners as they await word on the fate of 13 others -- including this man's brother -- who remain trapped. Click photo for larger image.

West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin III canceled plans to attend last night's Sugar Bowl football game in Atlanta and flew back to the mine site.

"Our hopes are high. Faith is good. Family is strong. We're still praying for miracles," he said late last night. "Everyone's doing everything they possibly can," he said.

An eight-member rescue crew descended into the mine shortly before 6 p.m. A second crew entered about 40 minutes later.

Late last night, the first crew was reported to be 4,800 feet into the mine -- slightly less than halfway to the area where the miners were believed to be. The rescuers reported good air quality.

Rescuers were kept out of the mine for most of the day while dangerously high levels of carbon monoxide -- a by-product of combustion -- were vented through holes previously drilled into the ground as ventilation, authorities said.

The rescuers were on foot and planned to make their way carefully, checking the stability of the roof and monitoring air quality as they worked deeper into the mine shaft.

They planned to try to clear any debris or obstructions by hand, officials said.

	Gene J. Puskar, Associated Press Rescue workers use global positioning devices to determine where to begin drilling a shaft intersecting the probable location of the 13 coal miners trapped underground near Tallmansville, W.Va. Click photo for larger image.

Meanwhile, mine officials were "making arrangements" to drill an air shaft from the surface into the mine -- a measure similar to one used successfully when nine miners were trapped in the flooded Quecreek mine in Somerset County in 2002.

They began drilling late last night, hoping to complete the shaft in four to six hours. The shaft had a dual purpose -- to allow for air-quality testing deep in the mine, and to allow officials to lower a microphone into the area where the miners might be.

Gene Kitts, a senior vice president for International Coal Group Inc., owner of the mine, said the miners carried an hour's worth of air in their rescue gear, but were also trained in barricading themselves away from lethal gases.

He said some of the trapped miners had 30 to 35 years' experience.

"We're just praying they have the opportunity to use it," Mr. Kitts said.

Company officials declined to identify the trapped miners.

A partial list, compiled from interviews with relatives by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and reports by The Associated Press, included: Helms, 50, of Newberg; Alby Martin Bennett, 50, of Buckhannon; Jim Bennett, 61, of Philippi; David Lewis, 28, of Philippi; Randal McCloy, 26, of Simpson; Fred Ware Jr., 59, of Tallmansville; Jack Weaver, 52, of Philippi; and Marshall Winans, 49, of Talbert.