During the early morning hours of Wednesday, October 11, a coal waste dam in Martin County, Kentucky collapsed, sending 250 million gallons of sludge down two nearby creeks. Coldwater Fork and Wolf Creek, tributaries of the Tug Fork of the Big Sandy River, are now oozing with the black waste, a toxic byproduct from washing coal.

Coal Sludge is a toxic mix of chemicals and mud left over from the processing of coal. The sludge is generally stored behind earthen dams made up of preparation plant waste. The dangers of these impoundments have been known for years. The Buffalo Creek Disaster in 1972 was caused by a sludge dam collapse. 125 people died and hundreds of homes were destroyed. There are approximately 225 sludge impoundments in Appalachia similar to the one in Martin County.

Officials from Martin County Coal Company, a subsidiary of A.T. Massey Coal (which is part of the Fluor Corporation) say that the spill was caused by the "sudden and unexpected" collapse of the underground mine beneath the slurry pond. Governor Paul Patton has declared Martin County, along with nine other Northeast Kentucky counties, a disaster area.