I have the most difficult time interviewing people affected by tragedy. I find it hard to keep my composure. You’ve probably seen Nick Helms on CNN. He’s 25 and his father, Terry, is one of the men trapped. He’s one of the mine’s fire bosses and based on the scant information we have right now, I feel he may be the one we know was killed.

Nick told me he just wanted to see his father again to tell him how much he loved him. He almost started crying and I thought I was going to, too. All I could say was, I’m sure he knows how much you love him. I desperately want his dad to be alive. —West Virginia mine explosion, my time there (Fifteen Minutes)

A very personal account by a reporter covering the W.Va. mine story.