On Monday, November 7, 2011, a 47 year old mine foreman, with approximately 26 years of mining experience, was killed when he was pinned between a battery-powered, rubber-tire personnel carrier and a coal rib. The personnel carrier had become stuck in reverse and the victim was positioned on his knees in front of the personnel carrier. When the operator placed the directional switch in forward, the personnel carrier traveled forward, striking the victim. A wooden crib block had fallen onto the control pedals and restricted their use.
Best Practices
- Never transport supplies or extraneous materials in a vehicle or on top of equipment that is not appropriate for the task.
- Never obstruct the vision of the equipment operator with the load.
- Do not operate a vehicle with debris, loose material, or trash in the operator’s compartment.
- Never position yourself in an area or location where equipment operators cannot readily see you.
- Be aware of your location in relation to movement of equipment, especially in lower coal seams.
- Train miners to use effective means of communication between themselves and equipment operators.
- When operating mobile equipment, ensure that other workers are in a safe area before moving the equipment.v
- Conduct Task Training for each type of personnel carrier or equipment being operated.
- For more information on preventing these types of accidents:
http://www.msha.gov/Safety_Targets/UGEquipCoal/EquipOpUGCoal.asp
Click here for: MSHA Preliminary Report (pdf), MSHA Investigation Report (pdf).