On January 19, 2006, the world was focused on tiny Melville in Logan County.

State and national media converged on Logan County, reporting on the struggle to find two miners, Ellery Elvis Hatfield and Don I. Bragg, who were lost inside the Alma No. 2 mine after a belt line fire broke out.

Two grueling days of searching ended when the bodies of the two men were found inside the mine.

The mine tragedy was magnified by the fact that just a few days earlier, 12 miners were lost in an explosion at the Sago Mine.

The two tragedies spurred mine safety legislation and investigations into company practices.

Now, the parent company of the Alma No. 2 mine, Massey Energy, is being sued by the widows of the two miners.

Throughout the entire ordeal, all of Logan County showed support for the miners and their families through signs, prayers, words of encouragement and other ways.

The No. 2 story of the year was the hostage crisis at Stollings that saw six people held at gunpoint by a gunman inside Family Discount Pharmacy.

The accused gunman, Geoffrey Harvey of Logan, told the press at his arraignment that he never intended to hurt any of his hostages, which he only intended to hurt himself.

All six hostages escaped unharmed after one of the captives, 71-year-old Arvel Garten, clobbered Harvey and restrained him until police could make an arrest.

The No. 3 story of the year was the Jeff Swanner letters written by Logan County Commission President Art Kirkendoll and Commissioner Danny Godby in favor of a lighter sentence after Swanner confessed to having a relationship with a minor.

The letters were a hot topic throughout Logan County and even spurred a write-in candidate to run against Godby in the November election. Despite the letters and the write-in candidate, Godby still won the commission race.

The No. 4 story of the year was the Mingo County Schools bus crash at Lenore when an Asplundt tree-trimming truck crashed into the bus, injuring several of the students on board.

The No. 5 story of 2006 was the two bomb scares in Logan County. The first one happened when a red suitcase was discovered sitting near the steps of the Logan Post Office and heat sensors detected something hot inside, leading police to call in the West Virginia State Police Bomb Squad, who used a robot to cut open the suitcase, in which was found nothing but clothes.

The man who left the suitcase at the post office was taken into custody, but was released after questioning.

A second bomb scare happened last week when a contraption that appeared to be an explosive device was found near Logan High School on Midelburg Island.

The bomb squad was again called in and discovered the device was not a bomb and was apparently a prank.

The No. 6 story was the biohazardous waste found in the old Man Hospital that had been left behind by at least one of the previous owners.

The waste, which included old blood, needles, barrels of hazardous materials and other items was cleaned up and shipped off to a dump in Kentucky.

The No. 7 story of the year was the election fraud sentencing.

Several local politicians found themselves facing stiff sentences for vote buying in Logan and Lincoln counties.

The No. 8 story was the Wendy Baisden murder, in which Baisden was burned alive in the trunk of a car. One man has confessed to the murder and another was found not guilty.

The No. 9 story of the year was the consolidation of Harts High School into the new Lincoln County High School and into Chapmanville High.

Several of the school’s athletes went to Chapmanville, while others chose to attend Logan and Lincoln schools.

The No. 10 story of the year was the death of Logan City Manager Willard Adkins in a tragic car crash in July.

The death of Adkins and another man in the crash spurred the installation of traffic lights at the intersection of Airport Road and U.S. Route 119 in Chapmanville where the crash and other accidents have occurred.