(a) Explosives shall be loaded by a qualified person or a person
working in the presence of and under the direction of a qualified person.
(b) When boreholes are being loaded, no other work except that
necessary to protect persons shall be done in the working place or other area
where blasting is to be performed.
(c) When loading boreholes drilled at an angle of 45 degrees or
greater from the horizontal in solid rock or loading long holes drilled
upward in anthracite mines--
(1) The first cartridge in each borehole shall be the
primer cartridge with the end of the cartridge containing the detonator
facing the back of the borehole; and
(2) The explosive cartridges shall be loaded in a manner
that provides contact between each cartridge in the borehole.
(d) When loading other boreholes--
(1) The primer cartridge shall be the first cartridge
loaded in the borehole;
(2) The end of the cartridge in which the detonator is
inserted shall face the back of the borehole; and
(3) The primer cartridge and other explosives shall be
pushed to the back of the borehole in a continuous column with no cartridge
being deliberately crushed or deformed.
(e) An explosive shall not be loaded into a borehole if it is
damaged, deteriorated or if the cartridge is incompletely filled.
(f) Explosives of different brands, types or cartridge diameters
shall not be loaded in the same borehole.
(g) Only nonconductive, nonsparking tamping poles shall be used for
loading and tamping boreholes. The use of nonsparking connecting devices for
extendable tamping poles is permitted.
