Harless tells how she crawled to freedom and led rescuers to diabetic stepfather
BY ANNIE HOLLER
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
LOVELY — A 14-year-old girl crawled through an opening “no larger than a rabbit hole” Sunday evening and led rescuers to the passage they widened to save her diabetic stepfather from an abandoned coal mine.
Ada Harless and Joey Stevens, 30, of Lovely, had been trapped underground for approximately 17 hours after a roof collapse blocked the opening through which they had entered the abandoned Winco Mine in the Long Branch area in Lovely.
Stevens was slipping in and out of consciousness from low blood sugar by the time Harless escaped and called her mother.
Rescuers located the teenager by pinging the cellphone Stevens had given her. They then broke apart rocks and removed debris around the small opening until they could pull Stevens to safety.
Crews also rescued the family’s Great Dane, whose pursuit of a rat into the mine had set the ordeal in motion.
Linda Stevens, Harless’ mother and Joey Stevens’ wife, said her daughter and husband frequently rode an ATV together on property owned by relatives.
“This is something my daughter loves to do with her stepdad,” Linda Stevens said. “They enjoy the bonding time and have a blast when they go. They always take her dog with them. He’s a Great Dane, and he loves riding as much as they do.”
Harless last spoke with her mother at approximately 1:50 a.m. Sunday. She said they were nearby and would be home shortly.
When the pair did not return, Linda Stevens repeatedly called her husband’s cellphone but received no answer.
“My first thought was maybe they had broken down or had an accident,” she said. “I also wondered if the cell battery was dead. I started calling family and neighbors to help search.”
Relatives found Stevens’ ATV parked outside the entrance to the old mine works on his uncle’s property.
Stevens’ brother stepped inside the entrance and discovered two sets of footprints leading into the mine but none coming back out, Linda Stevens said. The family then contacted Martin County 911.
Emergency personnel, volunteer fire departments and law enforcement officers responded to the abandoned Winco Mine, which has been closed since the 1940s.
Martin County Sheriff John Kirk asked dispatchers to contact the Pikeville Mine Safety office and request a specialized mine rescue team, as the deteriorated mine was considered too dangerous for anyone without proper training and equipment to enter.
“To be honest, I didn’t have a good feeling about how this situation would end,” Kirk said. “Old mines can be filled with gases that can be lethal in just a matter of minutes, as well as molds that are just as volatile. Plus, when you add the dangers of roof collapse, snakes, rats and whatever else that may be inside the dark, it’s a recipe for disaster.”
Kirk called on the community to pray for Harless, Stevens and the rescuers.
“That’s when I asked everyone who heard of this situation and believed in the power of prayer to hit their knees,” he said. “I knew if they made it out alive, it would only be by the grace of God.”
The danger became more urgent when responders learned Stevens had Type 1 diabetes and depended on insulin. A backpack containing snacks and other supplies had been left on the ATV.
Linda Stevens, distraught and beside herself, was denied access to the immediate area of the mine. Acting on instinct, she set out on foot across another section of the mountain, determined to get closer to where her husband and daughter were believed to be trapped.
Wearing only a tank top and shorts and without shoes, she fought her way through briars and brush before encountering a bear cub.
“Right after seeing the cub, I heard something large crashing through the trees and looked up at the top of the ridge and saw a huge bear,” Linda Stevens said. “I know you’re not supposed to run, but that fight-or-flight instinct set in and I had nothing to fight with. I ran like crazy straight back off the mountain.”
As she fled, she caught her foot on a tree root and fell flat on her back on a rock.
“Thankfully the bear didn’t come down that far because at that point, I know I would have been mauled to death,” she said.
Kentucky State Police troopers encountered Linda Stevens shortly after she came off the mountain. They then allowed her to wait a short distance from the mine, where she would not interfere with the operation but could hear updates and be immediately available if rescuers located her husband and daughter.
“The moment that made me panic more than any other was when I overheard a conversation that I know wasn’t meant for my ears,” she said. “A law enforcement officer, while speaking to another, said, ‘I feel this is no longer a rescue mission, but a recovery.’ My heart literally felt like it was pulled from my chest.”
Linda Stevens said troopers quickly tried to calm her and assured her that everyone was doing everything possible to bring them out alive.
Underground, Harless, Stevens and the dog crawled through sections of the mine where the roof was too low for them to stand.
As they searched the walls and roof for signs of light that might lead them to another exit, they seemed to travel in circles, repeatedly returning to the same locations. They began stacking rocks as landmarks to help them keep their bearings.
“My daughter and husband told me terrifying details about their ordeal, including how they were on their hands and knees crawling because there was no room to stand,” Linda Stevens said. “They encountered what they believed were pockets of gas and both passed out for a time, and so did the dog.”
Stevens, at one point, physically pulled Harless because she had become too weak to crawl, Linda Stevens said.
After reaching an area where they could breathe more easily, they rested from exhaustion. Harless used the Great Dane as a source of body heat to stay warm.
Harless eventually noticed the air growing warmer. She crawled toward it and began seeing cracks of daylight.
She and Stevens dug at the opening with their hands until they created enough room for Harless to squeeze through. The opening was too small for Stevens.
He gave Harless his cellphone, which still had power, and she crawled outside.
As nightfall approached, Linda Stevens’ phone rang. Her daughter was calling to say she had escaped, but her stepfather remained trapped underground.
“A state trooper took the phone and talked to Ada, who was crying and weak but had managed to crawl through a small hole in another section of the mines to escape,” Linda Stevens said. “She said her stepdad was still trapped inside and had lost consciousness due to low blood sugar.”
The trooper instructed Harless to hang up and call 911 so dispatchers could pinpoint her location through the cellphone.
Linda Stevens climbed into a side-by-side with four state troopers and rushed toward the location. They eventually had to continue on foot because the vehicle could not pass through the heavily wooded terrain.
Stevens said the happiest moment of her life came when she saw her daughter and Harless leaped into her arms.
Harless then led responders to the small opening through which she had escaped. Linda Stevens described it as “no larger than a rabbit hole.”
Joey Stevens was going in and out of consciousness inside the mine. Linda Stevens had brought two cans of soda, which rescuers maneuvered through the opening to raise his blood sugar while they worked to free him.
Troopers and emergency responders used available tools and even their hands to break apart rocks and remove debris surrounding the opening.
Their efforts created enough room to pull Stevens outside. They continued working until they rescued the Great Dane as well.
Emergency medical personnel treated Harless and Stevens at the scene for abrasions, bruising and dehydration. Stevens also received treatment for low blood sugar.
Both were medically cleared and permitted to return home.
On the way, they were met by a Child Protective Services caseworker who conducted a wellness check and assessed Harless’ health and safety.
Linda Stevens said the caseworker spoke at length with her daughter and found no issues. The caseworker instructed Linda Stevens to have Harless examined by her physician Monday, which she said she did.
“First and foremost, I want to thank each and every person who prayed because I know God was with my daughter and husband,” Linda Stevens said. “To all the law enforcement that responded, emergency management, all the volunteer firefighters and the Martin County Rescue Squad, I owe a debt to each of you that I can never repay.”
She expressed her thanks to Martin County Rescue Squad member Ryan May for having pizza and drinks ready, as Harless and Stevens had not eaten for approximately 19 hours.
“I also want to thank my family and neighbors for standing with me during that horrible time,” she said. “You all mean the world to me.”
Kirk said the family’s ordeal should serve as a warning about the dangers of entering abandoned mines.
“Not every story such as this has a happy ending,” Kirk said. “How easily could this family have been planning funerals today rather than celebrating their loved one’s safe return. You have to think before acting. There’s nothing worth endangering your life or the life of another. Why take the chance?”
Inez, Warfield and Kermit volunteer fire departments, Martin County REACT & Rescue, Martin County Sheriff’s Office, Kentucky State Police Post 9, Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet, and Martin County Emergency Services responded to the scene.