By Greg Jordan, Bluefield Daily Telegraph
EDITOR’S NOTE: The following story is part one of a two-part series examining the devastating impact of black lung disease on the lives of southern West Virginia coal miners and the complications they face when trying to obtain benefits.
KEGLEY – Seventy-one-year-old Danny Johnson starts his morning with hot coffee, but not for the same reason others have a cup.
During a visit to the Bluestone Health Center near Princeton where his wife, Debbie Johnson, and their daughter Amanda Lawson work, the retired coal miner described how his days begin.
He held his finger and thumb about an inch apart.
“I drink about that much coffee. Just enough, just a couple of sips, and I drink it hot. Then I’ve got to head to the bathroom,” he said. “I don’t know what the coffee does.” He pointed to his chest. “But it gets down there where it gets so hot.”
