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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION Accident Investigation Report Surface Sand and Gravel Fatal Powered Haulage Accident Martin Sand & Gravel Martin Sand & Gravel (mill) Hamilton City, Glenn County, California ID No. 04-05302 February 3, 1997 by Ronald G. Ainge Mine Safety and Health Inspector Gary L. Cook Mine Safety and Health Inspector Mine Safety and Health Administration Western District 3333 Vaca Valley Parkway, Suite 600 Vacaville, California 95688 James M. Salois Acting District Manager GENERAL INFORMATION Larry Hofman, plant operator, age 36, was injured at 11:40 a.m. on February 3, 1997 when he became entangled in the tail pulley of a custom built conveyor system. He died of his injuries on February 5, 1997. Hofman had worked in the mining industry for nine months, all with Martin Sand & Gravel. Edward Tim Hurley, safety engineer for the State of California DIR/DOSH Mining and Tunneling Unit, notified MSHA of the accident on February 6, 1997. An investigation was started the same day. The accident occurred at a portable crusher owned and operated by Martin Sand and Gravel of Hamilton City, Glenn County, California. The crusher was being used to process material provided by Pine Creek Rock (mine ID No. 04-05303) from its adjoining surface mine. Pine Creek Rock used a dozer to rip and loosen material and to stockpile it near the plant. Martin Sand and Gravel screened and crushed the material according to Pine Creek Rock's needs. The sole official of Martin Sand and Gravel was Dennis Glassburn, owner. The plant normally worked one 9-hour shift, five days a week. Three people worked at the portable crusher, processing material. There were no inspections at either of these mining/milling operations prior to the accident. Pine Creek Rock had notified MSHA of its intent to go into operation, Martin Sand and Gravel had not. A regular inspection was conducted March 5 and 6, 1997. PHYSICAL FACTORS The accident occurred at the No.1 discharge conveyor tail pulley of an El Jay portable crushing and screening plant. The No. 1 discharge conveyor was a custom built, sixty-foot long, lattice type conveyor driven by a single v-belt, ten horsepower motor. The conveyor was equipped with a 26-inch wide, self-cleaning, fin type tail pulley and a smooth head pulley of the same width. The head and tail pulleys were both thirteen inches in diameter. The conveyor's tail pulley had expanded metal guards edged with 1-3/16 inch flat bar straps. The top of the tail pulley and side pulley guards were covered with a piece of conveyor belt. The belting guard failed to cover the rear section of the tail pulley and exposed the moving machine parts to contact by persons. The 24-inch wide No. 1 discharge conveyor belt was fed material from the under-screen conveyor located beneath the El Jay's inclined screen deck. A distance of 17 inches separated the bottom of the under-screen conveyor's head pulley and the top of the No. 1 discharge conveyor tail pulley. The speed of the conveyor belt was approximately 300 feet per minute. Before start-up, between 7:00 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., spilled material was cleaned up at the various transfer points in the crushing/screening plant. After several days of clean-up a pile of material would build up and have to be removed with a front end loader. The weather on the day of the accident was clear and cool with the temperature between 50 and 60 degree Fahrenheit. DESCRIPTION OF ACCIDENT On the day of the accident, Larry O. Hofman (victim) reported for work at about 7:00 a.m. Hofman shoveled spilled material out from under the different transfer points until about 7:30 a.m. He then started the plant, let it run for a few minutes, and began processing material at about 7:45 a.m. The plant operated normally until about 11:40 a.m. when Jeannie Glassburn, feeding the plant with a front-end loader, noticed smoke coming from the area of the v-belt drive on the No. 1 discharge conveyor head pulley. She stopped her loader and went to the operator's booth to see if Hofman was aware of the problem. He was not at his station so Glassburn shut down the plant and went to the No. 1 conveyor. She was joined by James Ryan, an employee of Pine Creek Rock, who also noticed the smoke and came to investigate. They found Hofman unconscious with his sweater entangled in the conveyor tail pulley. The conveyor feeding the stalled conveyor had continued to operate, almost completely covering Hofman with material. Glassburn went to the operator's control booth and called 911 while Ryan began uncovering Hofman. A Flight Care helicopter was dispatched from Enloe Hospital, Chico, California, along with two fire trucks from the California Department of Forestry. The helicopter arrived at about 12:00 noon. Flight nurse Donna Knapp cut away the sweater that had caused Hofman's asphyxiation and began CPR. He was then flown to the hospital where, as an organ donor, he was maintained on life support. He died February 5, 1997 when life support was discontinued. CONClUSION The primary cause of the accident was the victim working around the inadequately guarded tail pulley of a conveyor that had not been de-energized. VIOLATIONS Order No. 7952608 Issued on February 7, 1997 under provisions of Section of 103(k) of the mine act: Citation No. 7952610 Issued on February 7, 1997 under provisions of Section 103 (j) for a violation of 30 CFR 50.10: Citation No. 7952613 Issued on February 7, 1997 under provisions of Section 104 (a) for a violation of 30 CFR 56.14105: Citation No. 7952614 Issued on February 7, 1997 under provisions of Section 104 (a) for a violation of 30 CFR 56.14112(b): Citation No. 7952616 Issued on February 7, 1997 under provisions of Section 104 (a) for a violation of 30 CFR 56.14107(a): /s/ Gary L. Cook Mine Safety and Health Inspector /s/ Ronald G. Ainge Mine Safety and Health Inspector Approved by: James M. Salois, Acting District Manager Related Fatal Alert Bulletin:  [FAB97M07]
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