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UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION
COAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH

REPORT OF INVESTIGATION
Underground Coal Mine

Fatal Fall of Rib Accident
November 29, 2001

Prosperity Mine
Five Star Mining, Inc.
Petersburg, Pike County, Indiana
I. D. No. 12-02249

Accident Investigators

Steven M. Miller
Coal Mine Safety and Health Inspector

Dennis R. Plab
Coal Mine Safety and Health Inspector

Leland Payne
Mine Safety and Health Specialist (Training)

Originating Office - Mine Safety and Health Administration
District 8
2300 Willow Street, Vincennes, Indiana 47591
James K. Oakes, District Manager

Release Date 07-03-2002



OVERVIEW


On Wednesday, November 29, 2001, at approximately 3:20 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST), a fatal Fall of Rib accident occurred at the Five Star Mining, Inc., Prosperity Mine on the Unit 2 (MMU - 002) active section. Michael L. Poirot (Victim), Roofbolter Operator, and Earl R. Carter, operator of the roofbolting machine, had just finished installing the last row of permanent roof support and rockdusting the 6 Right Crosscut. Poirot was standing along the left side of the Fletcher Roof Ranger II roofbolting machine as Carter began to lower the automatic temporary roof support (ATRS) at the time of the accident. After a "pop" sound occurred, Poirot ask Carter if he had heard it. As Carter replied, "yes", the rock rib along the inby right corner of the intersection of 6 Right Crosscut and the No. 6 Entry sheared off and slid down, crushing Poirot against the roofbolting machine. The rock rib measured approximately 10.5 feet long, 6.5 feet wide, and 30 inches thick. The height in the area of the accident measured approximately 9 feet from the mine floor to the existing mine roof.

GENERAL INFORMATION


Five Star Mining, Inc., Prosperity Mine, I.D. 12-02249, is located six miles west of Petersburg, Pike County, Indiana. Construction of the mine began on January 6, 2000, and coal production began on November 1, 2000. The mine employs 226 people, 191 underground, 25 surface, and 27 administrative. The mine is accessed by a benched box cut and a 500-foot slope, excavated at eight degrees, into the Springfield No. 5 Coal Seam. The coal seam at this mine varies from five feet to ten feet in thickness. Ventilation is provided by a main fan blowing a total of 300,000 cubic feet of air per minute. The most current laboratory analysis of return air samples collected by the Mine Safety Health Administration (MSHA) revealed a total liberation of 273,047 cubic feet per day (24 hrs.) of methane. During advance mining, face areas are ventilated by blowing line curtain and scrubber-equipped continuous mining machines. The immediate mine roof consists of 50 feet of hard gray sandy shale and the overburden for this mine is approximately 220 feet to 240 feet.

The mine operates on two production shifts and one maintenance shift. Coal is produced on day shift and second shift and maintenance is performed on the third shift. The mine produces approximately 19,000 tons of raw coal per day from four mechanized mining machine units. Coal is transported from the face area to the dumping point by electric shuttle cars and then to the surface on a system of conveyor belts. Diesel powered equipment is utilized for transportation of personnel and materials.

The section utilizes a remote-controlled 14CM Joy continuous mining machine, three Joy shuttle cars, a double-boomed J.H. Fletcher roofbolting machine, an S&S battery-powered scoop, and an A.L. Lee mini-track. After the mining cycle is completed, a J.H. Fletcher single-boom truss roofbolting machine is used to install 8-foot to12-foot cable roofbolts in primary intake escapeways, travelway entries, and any other areas that may require additional roof support.

The Roof Control Plan in effect at the time of the accident was approved by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) on August 2, 2001. The original mine training plan was approved by MSHA on May 6, 1999. The principal officers for the Prosperity Mine at the time of the accident were:
President............................................................. Donald Blankenberger
Vice-President..................................... .................. Rick J. Blankenberger
Treasurer............................................................. David M. Blankenberger
Secretary............................................................. Patrick A. Blankenberger
General Manager/Superintendent.................................. Billy R. Nash
Mine Manager.................................................... Sylver DiLorenzo
Manager of Health and Safety....................................... Jeffrey R. Wirth
An MSHA Safety and Health Inspection (AAA) began on October 12, 2001, and was ongoing at the time of the accident. The previous Safety and Health Inspection (AAA) began on July 30, 2001, and was completed on September 14, 2001.

The Non-Fatal Days Lost (NFDL) incident rate for January 1, through June 30, 2001, was 7.00 for underground mines nationwide and 2.47 for the Prosperity Mine.

DESCRIPTION OF ACCIDENT


On Wednesday, November 29, 2001, the day shift crew for the MMU-002, Unit 2, entered the mine at approximately 7:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) under the supervision of Pat Thombleson, Section Foreman. The crew consisted of nine persons, including the foreman. They traveled by diesel-powered rubber-tired personnel carriers down the benched box cut travelway to the mouth of the slope and through the main travelways into Unit 2.

Upon arriving on the section at approximately 7:15 a.m. EST, Thombleson spoke with the 3rd shift foreman and then traveled across the face area to make his routine examinations. After the faces were examined, Thombleson briefed the crew of the location of the equipment and where they would begin mining. At the time of the accident, Unit 2 was advancing six entries. The No. 7 Entry had been dropped three crosscuts outby the 6 Right Crosscut to mine around an oil well.

Normal mining operation began at approximately 7:35 a.m. with Randy Archer and Tim Waddell, Continuous Mining Machine Operators, completing a cut in the outby 4 Left Crosscut that had been left from a previous shift. Thombleson had traveled across the face area many times throughout the shift performing gas checks, checking curtains, running sight lines, and examining for hazardous conditions.

When the crosscut outby the 6 Right Crosscut was mined, Archer and Waddell stated they had encountered some bad roof. This crosscut had a slip running on an angle across the face area. While preparing to make the first cut in the 6 Right Crosscut, Archer and Waddell believed the slip from the crosscut outby might continue through the 6 Right Crosscut, so they decided to narrow the entry width down and make a short 20-foot cut. This would also keep the diagonal entry width narrowed down exposing less unsupported mine roof. They mined the 6 Right Crosscut straight from the crosscut between No.4 and No. 5 Entries. Archer and Waddell stated as they were mining the 6 Right Crosscut, they noticed they had a small rock runner coming out into the coal face. There was a full face of coal when they started mining, but about four feet into the cut, they encountered a band of rock about a foot wide. The rock was not very thick and when they finished the short cut, they had a full face of coal.

As Archer and Waddell were backing the continuous mining machine out of the 6 Right Crosscut, they noticed some loose rock and trammed the continuous mining machine back in and trimmed 6 to10 inches of rock from the mine roof. When they came out of the 6 Right Crosscut, they stopped and talked with Poirot and Carter about the roof conditions in the 6 Right Crosscut. There was no discussion about the ribs because in their opinion, the ribs looked safe. According to their statements, neither the miner operators nor the roofbolters saw anything to be concerned about with the ribs before the accident occurred.

Carter stated he and Poirot pulled into the 6 Right Crosscut at approximately 2:40 p.m., Carter stated that he and Poirot had installed 48-inch, full resin, roofbolts in the mine roof, rockdusted the crosscut and were preparing to back the roofbolter out of the 6 Right Crosscut at approximately 3:20 p.m. (EST). Just before the accident, Poirot was standing on the left side of the roofbolting machine, the side of the machine that he normally operates, with his back to the rib. After a "pop" sound occurred, Poirot ask Carter if he had heard it. As Carter replied, "yes", the rock rib along the inby right corner of the intersection of 6 Right Crosscut and the No. 6 Entry sheared off and slid down, crushing Poirot against the roofbolting machine.

Thombleson was in the intake entry and said he heard a crash and immediately ran to the roofbolter. There he found Poirot under the rock. He checked for a pulse and found none. He then ran to the phone to call for help while the crew began to remove the rock from Poirot. Bill Nash, Sylver DiLorenzo, Fred Qualls, Jeff Wirth (EMT), Steven Sodgrass (EMT), and Mike Workman all came to the unit to assist in the recovery. Bill Nash called the surface and instructed them to have an ambulance waiting on the surface for Poirot and to call 911.

The crew continued to work to remove Poirot with sledge hammers, pry bars, props, header boards, track jacks, the mini-track, and the battery powered scoop. Because of the angle of the large piece of rock, it had to be stabilized before they could remove Poirot. They blocked the rock up with the help of the mini-track and a track jack. Once the rock was stable, they fastened a chain to the frame of the roofbolter and pulled it sideways to allow Poirot to be extricated vertically from between the rock and the roofbolter. Poirot was placed, on a backboard and CPR began immediately. He was then transported to the surface at approximately 4:00 p.m. EST, where EMT's from Pike County EMS were waiting.

Janet Gray, EMT, examined Poriot and called Pike County EMS Medical Controller at Jasper Memorial Hospital, and talked with Dr. Steven O'Connor. He instructed Gray to stop CPR as there were no signs of life. Deputy Coroner Diana Barnes pronounced Poirot dead at 4:15 p.m. EST at the mine. Pike County EMS dispatcher contacted the Pike County Chief Coroner, Lowry Cooper and he instructed the dispatcher to have the ambulance crew to bring Poirot to Harris Funeral Home in Petersburg, Indiana.

INVESTIGATION OF THE ACCIDENT


The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) Vincennes, Indiana, Field Office, District 8, was notified by Billy L. Nash, General Manager/Superintendent, on Wednesday, November 29, 2001, at approximately 3:50 p.m., Eastern Standard Time (EST), that a fatal accident involving a roofbolter had occurred at the Five Star Mining, Inc., Prosperity Mine. Emergency personnel from Pike County EMS, Petersburg Indiana, had been notified and quickly responded. After being informed of the accident, Vernon Stumbo and Bruce D. Harris, Coal Mine Inspectors, were dispatched to the scene to secure the accident site and issued a 103(k) order to ensure the safety of the miners.

MSHA dispatched an accident investigation team with members from the Vincennes, Indiana, Field Office and the Benton, Illinois Field Office to the Five Star Mining, Inc. Prosperity Mine, on Wednesday, November 29, 2001. Upon arriving at the mine, the accident investigation team made contact with Joe Batson, Director of the State of Indiana Bureau of Mines and Minerals. The accident team then began the investigation jointly with the Indiana Bureau of Mines, assisted by mine management. The team was briefed concerning the circumstances surrounding the accident. Interviews of individuals at the mine known to have actual knowledge of the facts surrounding the accident were conducted at the Prosperity Mine office the evening of November 29, 2001.

DISCUSSION


Human Factors


Poirot had no known physical impairments or medical conditions that would have contributed to the accident. There was an eyewitness that stated they heard the rock rib pop just before it fell.

Environmental Factors


The depth of overburden at the accident location was 239 feet. The immediate roof strata consisted of 34 feet of gray shale with limestone streaks.

Physical Factors


The Accident Site


The accident occurred in the crosscut between No. 6 and No. 7 Entries (6 Right Crosscut) on the No. 2 Unit, MMU-002 at Station 1602. The rock rib that pinned Poirot against the roofbolting machine was approximately 10.5 feet long, 6.5 feet in width, and approximately 30 inches in thickness. The rock weighed approximately 6.4 tons. The rock was slick sided where it had been in contact with the mine roof and rib prior to sliding down. The void in the rib from where the rock slid measured approximately 13 feet by 7 feet by 11 feet 4 inches. There was a small rider seam in this area along the upper right hand side approximately 4 feet long.

Poirot was standing along the left side of the roofbolting machine when Earl Carter began to lower the ATRS from the mine roof to prepare to tram the roof bolting machine back out of the 6 Right Crosscut when the accident occurred. The left side of the roofbolting machine was approximately 3.5 feet from the original left rib line at the time of the accident. The preshift/onshift examiner's reports revealed that the examinations for the Unit 2, MMU-002 working section were being made and the results properly recorded. No hazardous conditions were recorded for the preshift examination, the shift prior to the accident.

The Roofbolting Machine


The roof bolting machine used on Unit 2 is a 2000 J.H. Fletcher Roof Ranger II Model No. RRII-13 Serial No. 2000039, dual boom, with a single bar ATRS. Poirot was the left side operator of the roofbolting machine. Carter stated the roofbolting machine was operating properly the day of the accident. The ATRS on the Fletcher dual boom machine was just being released from the mine roof at the time of the accident. There was no evidence to indicate that the ATRS caused the release of the rock rib involved in this accident.

The Roof Control Plan


The roof control plan for the mine was approved by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) on August 2, 2001. The plan specifies that roof bolts are to be installed on four and one-half foot centers with the bolts nearest to the ribs to be installed four feet from the rib. Entries and crosscuts in mains and submains may be mined to 18 feet wide and may be 20 feet wide in panels and rooms. Entry and crosscut centers may be from 50 to100 feet in mains, submains, and panels and may be 40 to 100 feet in rooms. Roof support is provided mostly by fully grouted resin bolts anchored by four feet of resin. The mine operator was complying with the roof control plan at the time of the accident.

Training Records


An examination of Poirot's training records revealed that he had received all the required training in accordance with 30 CFR, Part 48. Poirot had received newly-employed experienced miner training when he was employed at this mine on March 13, 2001. He received task training to operate a roofbolting machine on April 6, 2001.

CONCLUSION


The root cause of the accident was the sudden release of the rock rib from the mine roof and rib. Geological conditions in the area may have contributed to the instability of the rock rib, allowing it to release.

The cause of the accident was that the victim was positioned between the roofbolting machine and the rock rib when it fell, crushing the victim against the roofbolting machine.

ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS


A 103(k) Order (No. 7565644) was issued on November 29, 2001, and was terminated on November 30, 2001, under the provision of Section 103(k) of the Mine Act.

The mine has experienced a fatal fall of rib accident in the 002 unit. This order is issued to assure the safety of any person in the coal mine until an examination or investigation is made to determine that the 002 Unit is safe. Only those persons selected from company officials, state officials, the miners' representative, and other persons who are deemed by MSHA to have information relevant to the investigation may enter or remain in the affected area.

Fatal Alert Bulletin Icon FAB01C41




APPENDIX A


Listed below are those persons who participated and/or were present during the investigation:

FIVE STAR MINING, INC.
Billy L. Nash .......... General Manager/Superintendent
Sylver DiLorenzo .......... Mine Manager
Patrick J. Thombleson .......... Supervisor
Allan D. Kern .......... Mine Engineer
Jeffrey R. Wirth .......... Manager of Health and Safety
Michael A. Workman .......... Safety Technician
INDIANA BUREAU OF MINES
Joe W. Batson .......... Director of Mines and Minerals
MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION
Donald R. Persinger .......... Supervisory Coal Mine Safety and Health Inspector
Mark A. Odum .......... Supervisory Coal Mine Safety and Health Inspector
Steven M. Miller .......... Coal Mine Safety and Health Inspector
Dennis R. Plab .......... Coal Mine Safety and Health Inspector
Bruce A. Harris .......... Coal Mine Safety and Health Inspector
Vernon Stumbo .......... Coal Mine Safety and Health Inspector
Leland Payne .......... Mine Safety and Health Specialist(Training)


APPENDIX B


Listed below are those persons who were interviewed or provided information that was pertinent to the investigation: PIKE COUNTY OFFICIALS
Lowry Cooper .......... Pike County Chief Deputy Coroner
AIR-EVAC
Nichole Hunt .......... Supervisor
LIFE FLIGHT
Amy L. Scamman .......... Supervisor
Robert Harris .......... EMT
PIKE COUNTY EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE
Janet Hunt .......... Director of EMS
Mike Collier .......... Dispatcher
Diana Barnes .......... EMT
Janet Gray .......... EMT
J.H. FLETCHER & CO.
Gary Cline .......... Assistant Sales Manager
JENMAR
Jamey C. Lutz .......... Salesman
Gordon Fallen .......... Plant Superintendent
FIVE STAR MINING, INC.
Billy L. Nash .......... General Manager/Superintendent
Sylver DiLorenzo .......... Mine Manager
Allan D. Kern .......... Mine Engineer
Jeffrey R. Wirth .......... Manager of Health and Safety
Michael A. Workman .......... Safety Technician
Chris R. Whitehead .......... Surveyor
Stacy R. McKee .......... Surveyor
Patrick J. Thombleson .......... Supervisor
Earl R. Carter .......... Roofbolter
Randy L. Archer .......... Miner Operator
Timothy S. Waddell .......... Miner Operator
Steven M. Cozart .......... Shuttle Car Operator
David E. Nelson .......... Shuttle Car Operator
Patrick R. Smith .......... Laborer
James M. Blandford .......... Scoop Operator
Roscoe W. Miley .......... Mechanic
Steve R. Snodgrass .......... Roofbolter