Twenty-Six

By The Acclaimed Author Of Like This , A Finalist For The Giller Prize Leo McKay Jr.вЂTMs bestselling novel is set in a small Nova Scotia town, where a family is changed forever after a devastating mining accident claims the lives of twenty-six men. As the story shifts back and forth in time and between characters, we meet the men and women of the Burrows family: brothers Ziv and Arvel, drawn to the mine for different reasons; their father, a former union organizer; ZivвЂTMs ex-girlfriend, now living in Japan; and ArvelвЂTMs wife, who hopes for a better life for herself in the city. In the aftermath of the explosion, and as the investigation into its causes unfolds, the members of the Burrows family are forced to confront each other – and themselves – bringing the novel to its moving and redemptive conclusion. Written in spare, hard-hitting prose, and inspired in part by the Westray mining disaster, Twenty-Six is a novel of universal human struggle and understanding that evokes in all its drama and pathos a community transformed by tragedy. On May 9, 1992, an explosion occurred in the depths of the Westray coal mine in Pictou County, Nova Scotia, killing 26 miners. This report of the public inquiry into this disaster begins in the first volume with a review of the history of coal mining in the County and the development of the mine, its organization and management, worker training, and working conditions and practice. It then analyzes the underground conditions in the mine that contributed to the explosion: sources of ignition, the adequacy of the ventilation system, the presence of methane and coal dust, and the difficulty of ground control. Volume two discusses the departmental and ministerial responsibility of the provincial regulators and legislation, and the adequacy of regulatory activity in controlling conditions at the mine. It also reviews rescue efforts conducted after the incident and the process of the public inquiry. The volume concludes with consolidated findings and recommendations to avoid a similar occurrence in the future. Appendices include terms of reference, inquiry rules of procedure, lists of witnesses and exhibits, and a chronology of the Westray mine. Volume three contains photos, maps, a glossary, and a bibliography, and volume four is the executive summary Shaun pulls no punches and gives no quarter to those responsible for what took place on May 9th. This is a book that Canadians will want to read. The company, as Shaun states in his book, tried to pull the wool over the eyes of the public. They were not fooled. Shauns book gives the screaming truth of the incompetency and lack of regard for human life by company officials and politicians. - Mike Piche, United Steelworkers Shaun pulls no punches and gives no quarter to those responsible for what took place on May 9th. This is a book that Canadians will want to read. The company, as Shaun states in his book, tried to pull the wool over the eyes of the public. They were not fooled. Shauns book gives the screaming truth of the incompetency and lack of regard for human life by company officials and politicians. - Mike Piche, United Steelworkers On May 8, 1992, twenty-six men went underground to work the night shift at the Westray coal mine in Nova Scotia. They never came back. The massive explosion that claimed their lives the next morning sent shock waves across North America and around the world. Calculated Risk is the only comprehensive account of the worst mine disaster in modern Canadian history. It recounts the stories of the miners who died and the families they left behind and exposes the safety lapses, political intrigue and business decisions that culminated in disaster. The author is a draegerman in Plymouth, Pictou County, Nova Scotia. 26 coal miners were killed in an explosion at the Westray Mine in 1992. The author was part of the rescue team, and this is his personal account of the disaster, one of the worst mining accidents in Canadian history. This volume includes dozens of photos, a list of the victims and memorials, glossary of mining terms At 5:18am on 9 May 1992 the Westray coal mine exploded killing 26 miners v. 1-2. The Westray story [v.] 3. Reference [v.] 4. Executive summary.