On January 25, 2017, a miner was found in an underground limestone mine after failing to exit the mine at the end of the shift. The miner was located under material that had fallen from the rib in an area of the mine that had been barricaded to prevent entry due to bad roof and rib conditions.
Best Practices
- Install barriers to impede unauthorized entry into areas where unattended hazardous ground conditions exist.
- Establish procedures to account for miners in all areas of the mine – surface, underground, shops, and facilities – across and at the end of shifts.
- Do not cross barriers that are intended to prevent access to dangered-off areas of underground mines.
- Train miners to recognize potentially hazardous ground conditions and to understand safe job procedures for elimination of the hazards.
- Never enter hazardous areas that have been dangered-off or otherwise identified to prohibit entry.
- Develop and train miners on a method that clearly alerts miners not to enter hazardous areas.
- If possible, do not work alone. If working alone, communicate intended movements to a responsible person.
Click here for: MSHA Preliminary Report (pdf), Final Report (pdf).
On February 3, 2017, a 54-year-old truck driver received hip and leg fractures when he jumped from the cab of his truck as it was overturning. The victim positioned the truck on the dump pad and began raising the bed. Material in the bed was frozen or compacted and created an uneven load. As the bed reached full extension, the truck fell over. Due to complications associated with his injuries, the victim passed away 7 days later.
On Thursday, January 26, 2017, a 42-year-old miner with 23 years of mining experience was fatally injured when he contacted a moving drive roller for the section belt. The victim was positioned between the guard and the conveyor belt drive when he came in contact with the shaft of the belt drive roller.
On December 2, 2016, a technical representative for a shield manufacturer, with 13 years of experience, received fatal injuries while adding components to the hydraulic system of a longwall shield. The victim was positioned inside the shield near the hinge point when the shield collapsed and crushed him.
On December 21, 2016, a 39-year old contract truck driver, with 11 months of mining experience, was injured on the surface of an underground gold mine. The victim was hauling gold ore in an over-the-road truck from the mine to the plant. While descending the roadway from the mine, the victim lost control of his truck. He traveled up an embankment and over an approximate 20 foot drop, landing back in the roadway. The victim was transported to the hospital and died from his injuries several days later.