Also in the 1930s, developers of hydroelectric power for the Union Carbide plant at Alloy, West Virginia, the Kanawha and New River Power Company, decided to divert the New River through a three-mile tunnel under Hawks Nest. Many of the 3000 workers building the tunnel were asked to mine the silica they encountered for use in steel production. Never given protective equipment (although managers wore protective breathing apparatus during visits), hundreds developed silicosis some so severe that they died within a year. After Congressional hearings, the Hawks Nest Tunnel Disaster led to recognition of occupational lung disease as well as compensation legislation, as acknowledged by a historical marker on the site. It also became the subject of several books as well as historical fiction.