COAL MINE FATALITY-On Monday, July 26, 1999, a continuous miner helper was fatally injured in a machinery accident. The victim was attempting to drag the trailing cable out of the #3 entry when he apparently tripped or stumbled forward against the conveyor boom of the continuous miner which was being trammed across the intersection toward the #2 entry. The continuous miner trammed over road gob causing the conveyor boom end of the machine to tilt upward against the mine roof crushing the miner helper between the boom and mine roof resulting in fatal injuries. The miner operator reported that he was not aware that the victim had fallen against the boom of the machine.
BEST PRACTICES
All miners should be in a safe location while the continuous miner is being moved from one location to another.
All mining equipment should be stopped while the trailing cable is being hung.
All personnel who operate a continuous miner should be instructed to make sure the conveyor boom and ripper head are lowered, as far as possible, prior to moving the miner from one location to another.
All miners should wear reflective material.
This is the twentieth fatality reported in calendar year 1999 in the coal mining industry. As of this date in 1998, there were seventeen fatalities.
For more information:
MSHA's Fatal Accident Investigation Report [FTL99C20]
