Bodies of missing Buchanan County men extracted from abandoned mine

Two men reported missing in Buchanan County, Virginia were found dead inside of an abandoned mine.

A report from the county’s Sheriff’s Office said no foul play is suspected in the deaths of Jerry Chambers Jr, 49, of Jewell Ridge and Jerry Orville Jenks, 53, of Paynesville, West Virginia.

Investigators were informed of the missing men just after midnight Wednesday and further details received led them to an abandoned drift mine in the Spruce Pine area of Pilgrim’s Knob.

Mine rescue teams from Coronado Coal Company along with experts with the Mine Safety & Health Administration and the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy were all involved in the search. The report said the bodies of Chambers and Jenks were discovered just after 10:30 Wednesday morning. They were transported to the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Roanoke for autopsies.

(IMAGE: Mine Safety & Health Administration / Official Facebook)