In the wake of a deadly day in mining in which three miners lost their lives in separate incidents in Nevada, North Dakota and Virginia in early August, the Mine Safety and Health Administration is stepping up enforcement efforts and intensifying outreach and education nationwide.
In a conference call with industry stakeholders recently, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health Joseph Main expressed his concern over the alarming number of recent deaths.
“In the past month alone, there have been five fatalities in the metal and nonmetal industry. Not since 2002 have three miners died in a single day in this mining sector. We cannot — we will not — accept this turn of events. We extend our deepest sympathies to the families of the miners who died in these tragic accidents,” said Main.
The following incidents all occurred on Aug. 3:
• A loader operator was engulfed by a stockpile failure while standing outside his vehicle at a construction sand and gravel mine in North Dakota.
• A miner at an underground gold ore operation in Nevada was killed when he was struck by mobile equipment.
• An 18-year-old plant operator was buried under tons of sand and stone dust when a silo collapsed at a quarry in Virginia. MSHA has launched investigations into the causes of each of these fatalities.
Main announced that the agency will begin beefed-up inspections with a focus on violations commonly associated with mining deaths, and federal inspectors will emphasize “walk and talks” with miners and operators to disseminate information on fatalities and best practices for preventing them. MSHA coal mine inspectors, along with training and educational field personnel, will be tapped to assist in the initiative.
In 2014, there were 29 deaths at metal and non-metal mines and 15 to date this year.
Author Kori Shafer-Stack, Editor, Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. is an expert in post-injury response procedures and part of the Amaxx team helping companies reduce their workers compensation costs by 20% to 50%. www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com. Contact: kstack@reduceyourworkerscomp.com.
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