Flags Flown At Half Staff For W.Va. Miners

Gov. Patrick Morrisey has ordered flags to be flown at half staff to honor the life of Steve Lipscomb, who died at the Rolling Thunder Mine in Nicholas County. 

“All of West Virginia mourns the loss of this courageous man,” Morrisey said. “Steve was a veteran of the Marine Corps, a Purple Heart recipient, a husband and a father of two. He spent his final moments ensuring his men could escape to safety.”

A section of the Rolling Thunder Mine flooded Nov. 8 after an old mine wall was compromised. Lipscomb, the foreman, waited until every member of his crew was evacuated, guiding them to safety. The water filled the shaft, making escape impossible, according to officials. For five days, crews worked around the clock to rescue Lipscomb, but he did not survive.

Morrisey also recognized the people who worked tirelessly trying to rescue Lipscomb. 

“This was a rescue mission, and people put themselves at risk to try to save someone’s life. It’s pretty incredible,” he said. “You talk about the divers, they went in harm’s way. This is not an easy dive, and there were multiple diver groups who were willing to sacrifice everything to save their fellow man. That’s what humanity is, it’s pretty incredible.”

Morrisey explained to members of the media gathered outside the mine that “estimates of many tens of millions of gallons of water” entered the mine when a wall was breached. 

“We believe probably over 30 million gallons have been drained. That’s a lot of water,” he said. 

Morrisey refused to speculate on what caused the accident or how Lipscomb died, but said this weekend will be held for honoring Lipscomb. Next week, the investigations will begin and he promised to keep the media updated. 

The flag order signed by Morrisey recognizes all five West Virginia coal miners who lost their lives on the job in 2025 – Steven Fields, Billy Stalker, Eric Bartram, Joey Mitchell and Lipscomb. 

Lipscomb’s death marks the fifth coal miner to die in West Virginia this year. 

Mitchell, who died last week in the Mettiki mine in Grant County, marked the second in November alone. 

Flags must be lowered to half staff at all state buildings in West Virginia from noon on Nov. 14, to sunset on the day of Lipscomb’s internment.

Read the proclamation here.