Josh Napper Letter - West Virginia Mine Disaster

Coal miner Josh Napper had a sick feeling something wasn't right at his job, so he put his thoughts on paper, to those he loved the most before heading back to work. It would be his last communication with them.

"If anything happens to me, I will be looking down from heaven," his handwritten note read.

The 25-year-old Napper left it with his family in southeast Ohio, where he commuted to on weekends. Napper was among 29 people killed in an explosion at a West Virginia mine.

His mother, Pam Napper, didn't find out about the note until after he returned to work at the Upper Big Branch mine on Monday, the day of the explosion.

"I just knew that Josh in his heart knew that something was going to happen," Pam Napper said Friday.

He knew because his April 2 shift had ended about two hours early over ventilation concerns at the mine. He drove to Ohio to spend Easter with his family.

"I said, 'Why aren't you working?"' Pam Napper said. "He said, 'Mom, the ventilation's bad.' And they sent him out of the mines. Everybody."

She rushed to the mine site after the explosion. Also that day, his fiancee, Jennifer Ziegler, drove to West Virginia to show her the note written to his mom, 19-month-old daughter and fiancee.

"Dear Mommy and Jenna," Pam Napper recalled. "If anything happens to me, I will be looking down from heaven. If you take care of my baby girl, watch over (her), tell her all the good things about her daddy. She was so cute and funny. She was my little peanut. And Jennifer, I know things have never been the greatest sometimes, but I just want you to know I love you and I care about you."

The Montcoal Coal Mine, owned by Massey Energy, is still under investigation by federal mining safety investigators.

The West Virginia Mine Explosion occurred on Monday, April 5th, 2010, around 3 PM.

Video Credit: FOX News
Josh Napper Story: The Associated Press

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Mine
• Explosion
• West
• Virginia
• Coal
• Mining
• Disaster
• Josh
• Napper
• Montcoal
• Rescue
• WV
• Massey
• Energy
• Safety
• Record
• Methane
• Gas
• 5th
• April
• 2010

[SurferHangout]

Josh Napper's letter to his family, reported by the Associated Press, is posted in the clip details section. Josh wrote the letter before the mine explosion on Monday. Click the expand link to read the letter.

[Ducky2426]

I personally knew this mine. My brother in law was in there when it happened. He survived as the very people next to him did not. Very sad, scary, thing to happen but Massey needed to obide by regulations. They did not and theyre choice had a dire consequence.

[shark3444]

@Blockygraphics well i know how u feel but im from WV not to far from where this happened but he didnt have a choice thats all that is here so he couldnt pick a good paying job