 Scattered throughout the country are thousands of abandoned mines. Many of these sites date from the 1800s. Some have been closed and sealed off for public safety. However, many others are still open and can be deadly to an unsuspecting explorer. More and more people of all ages and descriptions are venturing out onto lands once rich with mining operations. Today, federal and state agencies are doing their best to protect people from abandoned mine hazards. As the popularity of outdoor recreational activities grows, the number of encounters with abandoned mines and their dangers dramatically increases. I didn't want to be a chicken, so I went in. It was a lot. It's no big deal. It looked really inviting. I didn't know it was dangerous. My dad does it, so why not? It's a family thing. You went in? You thought we'd just come right back out? We started going into mines when I was only ten years old. Big deal. Sometimes you just do stupid things. I couldn't back out now. I had to do it. It was raining, and I thought the mine would be safe. My friends dared me to go into the mines, so that's what I did. I've done this a million times. Look, it happened. I just went into the mine because I was curious. I didn't know anything bad could happen. It's no excuse. Now, more than ever, you must learn to protect yourself and those you love. You must stay out and stay alive. In Nevada on July 4, 1998, several young men found an abandoned mine. The mine entry had been vandalized, and they thought it would be fun to explore. They videotaped their dangerous journey. As you see, Bri is pointing out, stay out, stay alive. It's a good point, but we're not too smart, so we're going to go anyway. This is an unsafe mine. Danger. I do this all the time. Come on. There are abandoned mines in almost every state. Today, with the increased use of recreational lands, exploring abandoned mines has become a temptation hard to ignore. Abandoned mines are alluring, mysterious, and intriguing, but they can also be treacherous and terrifying death traps. The lure to adventure can be fatally misleading. Abandoned mines are unstable, unpredictable, and unsafe. One thing we know is about 30 people will die this year exploring abandoned mine lands. If you look at all this s***, there's lots of rocks and stuff that have fallen from the ceiling which indicates that probably a good idea to be walking this way. Well, they've already fallen, so they're not going to fall again. Well, there's more to fall still. Without any warning, rotten timbers can give way. Wooden supports, ladders, and hidden shaft covers can all crumble under a child's weight. The roof and sidewalls can collapse with a mere brush of an arm. A cave-in can block your escape, or even worse, crush you. Inside a mine, it's pitch black. Mines can be honeycombed with miles of horizontal and vertical tunnels that randomly follow an ore vein. It is easy to get lost. Those who have been stranded in a mine will tell you it's something they can never forget, but would rather not remember. We've got to remember where we're... OK, we've got out here. Who painted these eggs with these clips? Grant. What do they mean? Get in. OK, they're all got an X on them. They don't need to go this way. That one's got an X. That's also got that. What is the diamond mean? Mines are created by drilling and blasting, and are not natural features like caves. The explosives and blasting caps that were used to create these mines were sometimes left underground. Old explosives and blasting caps are extremely dangerous. They can be set off by simply touching or stepping on them. You may not see them before it's too late. Sometimes when a mine was closed, the mines operator simply told the workers not to come back to work the next day. The explosive charges workers had set but hadn't yet exploded still remain just as they were left. Explosives can also be found near abandoned mines. They were often stored away from the mines opening but near the mine operation. Dynamite becomes less and less stable through time. And just moving or touching the dynamite can set it off and kill you or meme you for life. If you do find dynamite or blasting caps, don't touch them. Call the sheriff. Wow, look at this. Ah, dynamite. Don't touch it. Abandoned structures and equipment are hazards. Old equipment can collapse due to decay. Equipment can roll trapping you or causing serious cuts, broken bones, or even death. Abandoned mines also provide shelter for a variety of animals and insects. This abandoned mine in Utah is a retreat for a black bear and her cubs, snakes, mountain lions, and bats may use the dark recesses of an abandoned mine. Underground mines can be essential habitat for such animals. You should not disturb them. They could startle you, throw you off balance, causing you to fall or scare you deeper into the mine. Oxygen deficient air, toxic gases, and explosive gases can build up in mines. This can be fatal. Mines are not caves. Caves have natural ventilation. Don't ever assume that just because you don't feel, taste, or smell gases in an abandoned mine, that they aren't there. You can't smell or taste most toxic gases, but by the time you feel their effects, you may be near death. Where does that go? It goes down a long way. Ooh, that's not a little. Well, it'd be kind of hard if you slipped and felt like you'd catch yourself before you actually fell down that. Not if panic sent in and you screamed at a little girl. It started as an ordinary day outing in the mountains near Lake City, Colorado. A Texas man, along with his girlfriend and her son, entered an abandoned mine. The man enjoyed doing mine exploration and took pride in the fact that he had been in a number of mines in this area. The man laughed when his girlfriend and her little boy left the mine early. They left the tunnel early in the incident because the little boy was feeling sick. And after the gentleman did not come back out of the tunnel, they re-entered it. The little boy felt sick again, came back out, and she started driving back toward Lake City. He flagged down a vehicle and asked that person to report the incident. We sent a crew into the tunnel using air packs with a gas analyzer. The air was unsafe, a very short distance into the tunnel. The victim reached a pocket of just insufficient air. In this particular situation, there were not necessarily a level of noxious gas to create death, but there was insufficient oxygen concentration to sustain life. So the victim lost consciousness, passed out. Autopsy results were such he did not have any water in his lungs, even though he was laying face down in the water for an extended period of time. His systems had already shut down before he hit that water. And the hardest part of this whole thing was having to tell her with the six-year-old son standing there that he was no longer alive. Our people were at risk for any rescue, but especially a mine rescue. And it's probably of all the things we do as the most hazardous. Not a good place to be. Not a good place to be is right. Professionals who inspect mines use special meters to check the air. They do this because conditions inside abandoned mines change through time. They can change day to day. They can even change hour to hour. People can also affect the air supply within the mine. Smoke from your campfires can penetrate into the deepest areas in mines, creating an atmosphere void of oxygen. Since abandoned mines are not ventilated, the natural decay of radioactive minerals can result in a buildup of radon. This radiation at extreme or continued low-level exposure can damage your lungs and other organs like your eyes. Hazardous waste may also exist on abandoned mine sites. Open drums or barrels can contain toxic materials. Do not taste or smell what is in them. Mine waste dumps may contain toxic materials which have inhaled or ingested can cause cancer. There can also be water in a mine. Water can be contaminated and deep. In the darkness, dust and old timbers can cover the water and make it look like solid ground. But when you step, you could be stepping into a deep pool. Water from abandoned mines can be polluted, which degrades the environment. This affects the local watershed and can even affect your drinking water. In an abandoned mine, you never know what will happen next. They are unstable. Mine shafts are deeper than you think. Some are as deep as a 100-story skyscraper is tall. Imagine falling over 1,000 feet. It can happen if you stand near an old mine shaft. The ground around shafts is often unstable and can easily crumble away, sending you plummeting hundreds of feet to the bottom. Sometimes you won't even see the shaft, so be aware of where you are and what the hazards may be. Merge water-filled pits and quarries are another deadly hazard. Over time, these pits and quarries overgrown with trees and grasses have filled with water. They look like beautiful lakes or recreational areas, a perfect playground, but they are fatal. Each year, dozens of people are injured or killed in quarries. One particular quarry located in the southern part of Pennsylvania is a very eerie place for the mother who lost her son in the deep waters. We received a call that Jeremy possibly was going and we came down to the quarry to see what was going on. When we got here, there were ambulances, the road was blocked, and they actually wouldn't let us come back into the quarry because they were searching for Jeremy's body. And after that day, we never saw Jeremy again. Abandoned pits may look very inviting when you first get to them. It's the blue water. It's the vegetation. They look nice. They look like a recreation lake, but they represent and contain serious hazards. Underwater obstructions like rocks, ledges, abandoned equipment, broken glass, steep slopes, sheer high walls, all put the visitor in danger. So no matter how inviting an abandoned pit of water looks, it's a serious hazard and it needs to be treated like a serious hazard. Swimming in an abandoned pit or quarry is probably one of the most dangerous things you could do. The deep waters of these quarries contain extremely cold water that could cause fatigue and cramping. Even good swimmers can drown in these cold waters because their bodies go into shock. The jagged rocks hidden underwater make diving very dangerous, and the steep cliffs surrounding the water make it very difficult for swimmers to escape. We've had the experience of pulling out numbers of fatalities, and it does not make it any easier as many times as you do it. His brother just graduated, and Jeremy was not able to be there to see his brother. We have been through many obstacles. It's been very hard living without Jeremy. And those experiences that Robin has gone through for her and her family, hits you in the heart because you can't imagine what it's like not to have your child come home for dinner. A tragedy for a group of teenagers occurred in the bookcliffs near Grand Junction, Colorado. The mine behind me is the bookcliff mine, which is the state of Colorado sealed in 1986. Approximately three years later, the feature was vandalized. A steel door, which was constructed, had a lock box, which actually was cut in several weeks, apparently after it was vandalized. Six high school students went into the mine. Five students went in very deep, approximately three or four hundred feet. One turned around actually before that point. Four went in a little further. At that point, three of the students came across an oxygen deficit area called Black Damp, where one of the individuals actually got above that location in the mine and survived, where in front of him his fellow three students died right in front of him. The community of Grand Junction was hard hit by this incident. Parents and friends of the victims set up a memorial near the bookcliffs mine. Stuffed animals, cards and letters were left, along with a wooden sign. To this day, flowers and cards are still left at the mine opening. Got some pipes. Oh, wow. We have to climb that? Yeah, so everybody can get up. I guess. We don't need the luxury one at all. Oh, shit. This is going to America's funniest when somebody falls. That's a good idea. Alrighty. Oh, that's the cable. Don't touch that. I hope the rope's still there. Where did he step? Oh, look at this ladder. I don't think I ever climbed up that. Where? Just down to the main shaft. Wow, so we're climbing down this rope? Yeah. How far down? How are we getting out of it? Climbing up it. I see. Oh, this is exciting. Who's got bad rope-climbing skills? I've climbed ropes before. There's a little ledge you can climb. How far down does it go? All the way down to that ladder? There's like a good 30 feet. Where the hell am I going to hook this fucking camera? I'm the first. I am. About 600 feet? You're like very cold. Put it like he's doing it in your mouth. Man, this is all I did there. Is it off now? No, it's not. How am I going to get this thing down there? Same as that. Yeah, but how am I going to get back up? I'm good at it. It's very heavy, not heavy. I don't have a fucking time. Take good. I'll give you my belt. Jesus! Adam! Oh, fuck! Adam! Adam! Yes. Adam! Oh, God. Oh, God. Somebody help me. Adam! The young man fell approximately 65 feet. The thrill of danger became only too real as he laid unconscious in the mine, hurt and scared. He had to wait several hours in the dark before he was rescued. This young man was lucky. Unfortunately, most people who enter abandoned mines don't come out alive and their stories are becoming all too commonplace. Part of the problem with abandoned mine lands is that many of the dangers that are on the site aren't readily apparent to the eye. Obviously, steep cliffs, we can all see those. But you have unstable slopes, you have mine openings that may look inviting, but when you go inside, you've got rocks on the roof that can fall, you've got old timbers, and you have hazards that you just can't detect when you stand there and look at them. And I think the thing that people don't realize is you can't outsmart an abandoned mine lands danger. One of the difficulties with mine exploration, I mean, for many people it is intriguing, there's a high level of curiosity, and there's just a mentality that, you know, this is open ground and this is fair game for exploration. The legality of the facts are, mines are private property. I mean, it is trespassing to be on the mine property in the first place. And more importantly, very few people have the training or the equipment to be entering into a mine safely. There are inherent risks, even if you are well trained and equipped properly. In our area here in western Colorado, there are several well run mine tour operations which I think can bridge that gap for people that want to see what hard rock mining is about, but do it in a safe controlled atmosphere. So by all means, don't go spelunking in the mine shafts and there's too much at risk and too high a price to pay. You can do your part by being aware of the dangers. Know your surroundings. And remember that abandoned mines are unstable, unpredictable and unsafe. It's not worth the risk. Just stay out and stay alive. Today, there are many agencies working together to remove the dangers of abandoned mines nationwide. By working in partnership, state and federal agencies are able to address the physical safety and environmental hazards these sites pose to the public and the environment. This collaborative effort allows the agencies to stretch their dollars and accomplish more. However, it will still take a long time to safeguard all the hazards found on abandoned mine lands. In the interim, you may be asking yourself how you can help. You can help by warning others of the dangers of abandoned mines and staying out of abandoned mines. Respect private property and do not trespass signs. In addition, when you find a closed mine, do not vandalize the closure. Those mines were closed because they were extremely hazardous. Besides, how would you feel if a person died in a mine because of your vandalism? Also, the money spent refixing a once-closed mine means other openings won't be closed. You can also help by reporting abandoned mine openings to your local land-managing agency, such as the Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, National Park Service, state abandoned mine programs, local sheriff, or the Office of Surface Mining. The crumbling remains of mines tell a story. They are a piece of our history, a link to the past. They take us to a time when, in the West, historic mining towns were centers of wealth, fashion, and high society. In the East, coal mines were the lifeblood of hundreds of communities. Tales of those who struck it rich in the mountains of the West lured more and more miners to the West in search of precious and base metals. Small mines appeared out of nowhere and were abandoned just as quickly if they proved to be worthless. Coal mines in the East fueled the railroads and the western expansion of miners and others into the frontier. When these mines were abandoned, there were no reclamation laws. It was common practice to leave the mining operation intact and just walk away. Not until January 1st, 1981, were there regulations requiring the reclamation of mining operations on public lands. Most state reclamation laws were adopted in the middle to late 1970s. Mining continues to be an integral part of the world's economy. Mining provides the raw materials used to make the things we use every day. The house you live in. The bicycle you ride. The television you watch. The compact disc you listen to. And the computer you use would not exist without mined materials. Cars, medicine, refrigerators, washers all require materials that are mined. When you think about it, most things you use every day exist because of mining. Modern reclamation laws assure that current and future mines will be reclaimed. However, the mines abandoned prior to these laws remain unstable, unpredictable, and unsafe. So please, stay out and stay alive.