U.S. Marine directed crew to safety as water flooded mine

Summary: With the lives of his 17 crew members in danger after a mine shaft flooded, a U.S. Marine made sure every one of his men got out alive.

The incident: Shortly after the terrorist attack of 9/11, Steve Lipscomb of Elkview, WV, joined the U.S. Marines to help fight the war on terror.

During his time in the Marines, Lipscomb participated in the First Battle of Fallujah, Iraq. A few days after that battle, Lipscomb was severely injured when he stepped on a roadside bomb. He was awarded a Purple Heart and medically discharged due to his debilitating injuries.

When Lipscomb returned to West Virginia, he took a job as a miner working alongside his brother Joseph. Nineteen years later, he was employed as a crew supervisor at the Rolling Thunder Mine near Drennen, WV, operated by Alpha Metallurgical Resources Inc.

Lipscomb was supervising a staff of 17 workers when an old mine that was filled with water was unexpectedly struck. As water gushed into the shaft where the crew was laboring, Lipscomb’s Marine training kicked in and he calmly directed his people to safety. However, Lipscomb was unable to get out quickly enough and he was inundated by the rushing water just as the last person on his crew exited the mine.

The response: It took rescuers five days to drain the mine of water and reach Lipscomb, who had already drowned.

The aftermath: Lipscomb, 42, left behind his wife, Heather, and their daughters, Greer and Stella.

“All of West Virginia mourns the loss of this courageous man,” said West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey (R).

“Steve left this world as a hero,” read his obituary, “but to those who knew him, he was a hero every day. Semper Fi Marine.”

(From the April 6, 2026, issue of Safety Alert for Supervisors. To start your no-obligation trial subscription to the publication right now, please click here.)