Changes

"We don't feel like that we contributed in any way to the accident," he said. "We do not believe that coal dust was a meaningful factor."<ref>[http://www.canadianbusiness.com/markets/market_news/article.jsp?content=D9J47DC80 "Massey Energy chief discounts coal dust as a factor in deadly W.Va. mine explosion"] Tim Huber, CBonline.com, October 27, 2010.</ref>

In December 2010, it was discovered that Massey miner Thomas Harrah said he used a forged foreman’s card to perform more than 200 pre-shift, on-shift, and conveyor belt safety inspections at the mine, according to documents obtained by The Charleston Gazette through the [[Freedom of Information Act]]. Harrah had been employed by Massey at the Upper Big Branch mine from January 2008 to August 2009, until state investigators learned that Harrah’s certification number belonged to another individual. By then, Harrah was working at another Massey Operation -- again under a certification number belonging to a different individual. The report said that while Harrah had a state license to work as a coal miner, he was unable to pass the test to become a certified mine foreman, who perform safety checks.<ref>Anne Moore, [http://www.statejournal.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=91005 "Newspaper: Upper Big Branch Foreman Forged License"] The State Journal, Dec. 13, 2010.</ref>