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COAL MINE FATALITY - On Thursday, March 2, 2000, at 10:30 a.m., a fatal fall of person accident claimed the life of a 47-year-old electrical contractor. The accident occurred in the Preparation Plant on top of the raw coal classifying cyclone sump where the victim was attempting to remove electrical conduit that had been previously installed over the operating sump. The cyclone was covered with a 10 gauge perforated metal covering. Although there were no eyewitnesses to the accident, the victim apparently stood on the metal covering while he was performing this work. The metal covering gave way and the victim fell through the covering into the operating raw coal classifying cyclone sump which resulted in fatal injuries.

Best Practices

  • The integrity of surface structures should be examined both visually and physically before any work is performed on the structure.
  • Safety belts and lines should be worn to secure persons at all work locations where a hazard of falling may exist.
More Information
E-mail Suggestion for Accident Prevention Program 		Submit your own suggestion for a remedy to prevent this type of accident in the future.
Please specify if you wish your submission to be anonymous or whether your name may be used. Please include the year of the fatality and the fatality number.


This is the fifth fatality reported in calendar year 2000 in the coal mining industry. As of this date in 1999, there were five fatalities.

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This bulletin is part of the Mine Safety and Health Administration's (MSHA) program to alert the mining industry in a timely manner of a tragic loss of life in the mines. We encourage you to consider the above information as you make safety decisions for or recommendations to your company or constituency. The information provided in this notice is based on preliminary data ONLY and does not represent final determinations regarding the nature of the incident or conclusions regarding the cause of the fatality.

For more information:
Fatal Alert Bulletin Icon MSHA's Fatal Accident Investigation Report



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