CLAY COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) — The holidays brought tragedy to a Clay County family. On December 27, two cousins were digging for coal to heat their homes when the mountain collapsed.
40-year-old Donald Short and 37-year-old Jonathan Hoskins died in the incident.
On Friday, the family will hold a funeral for the men, but they say they can't afford a proper burial.
“Something so natural to us, for it to end this way is really hard,” said Charlsie Edmonson, a cousin of the victims.
According to Edmonson, the men left on Christmas night to dig for coal to heat their homes. When they didn’t return home, a relative went to the abandoned coal mine in Manchester to check on them.
By then, the men had been buried in the rubble. The mountain collapsed overnight, according to Clay County officials.
“They're not the only people that would go to that coal seam and try to get coal out. So, for whatever reason, that day, it collapsed,” said Edmonson.
Edmonson described the men as builders and mechanics who were always willing to help the family. Short and Hoskins were also fathers.
“Donald and Jonathan were full of life,” said Edmonson. “We referred to them as ‘the boys.’ They were always getting in trouble. They were afraid of nothing, they would climb the tallest tree, there was no obstacle they wouldn't face.”
Proud and self-sufficient, the family isn't one to ask for help, but just two months ago, Jonathan's dad died of cancer. They hope to bury the men with him, but lack the funds.
Edmonson asks for support through a GoFundMeto lessen the burden on a family double struck with tragedy.
“You really have to hold your family a little bit tighter because you really never know when something tragic is gonna happen.”
