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COAL MINE FATALITY - On Monday, May 8, 2000, a 47-year old surface shovel operator, with 20 years mining experience, was assigned to drive, a Caterpillar, Model 777B, End Dump Truck, hauling overburden from an active pit to a valley fill dump site. The victim, who also had 19 months experience as a dump truck driver, backed the truck at an angle over the edge of the fill at the elevated dump site. The victim received fatal injuries when he was ejected from the cab of the truck as the truck rolled over and traveled approximately 500 feet to the bottom of the valley fill site.

Fatalgram Photo

Best Practices

  • Adequate berms should be constructed and maintained at all elevated dump sites.

  • When backing up at dump sites, all truck drivers, should be instructed to maintain the truck perpendicular to the edge of the dump site.

  • All personnel, who operate mobile equipment, should be instructed to wear their seat belts at all times the equipment is in motion.
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 eleventh fatality reported in calendar year 2000 in the coal mining industry. As of this date in 1999, there were twelve fatalities. This is the fourth powered haulage fatality reported in the coal mining industry in 2000. There were three powered haulage fatalities reported in the same period in 1999.

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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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