3 Die Trying To Re-Open Abandoned Gold Rush MineO'NEALS, Calif. (AP) ? Three men are dead after trying to reopen an abandoned Gold Rush-era mine in Madera County to dig for gold.Twenty-five-year-old David Alan Alison and 23-year-old Matthew Terry Alison -- both from Prather -- and 26-year-old Brannon David Scharf of Madera were found dead inside the 20-foot-deep mine during the weekend.Cal Fire officials say the men were using a gasoline-powered pump to drain underground water from the mine in O'Neals, about 20 miles south of Oakhurst.Authorities are doing autopsies to determine the cause of death. A Cal Fire spokeswoman says it had a high level of carbon monoxide and little oxygen.
