COAL MINE FATALITY - On Wednesday, September 6, 2000, a 53-year old electrician with 20 years of mining experience received fatal injuries when a piece of rock measuring approximately 11½ feet long by 8 feet wide by 2 to 9 inches thick fell striking the victim. He was in the process of installing a wooden crib inby permanent roof supports to access a Joy 14CM-15 continuous miner. The continuous miner had lost its power while positioned inby permanent roof support as the right side of the extended cut was being completed.

• Sound and vibration tests, or other equivalent tests should be made prior to the installation of roof supports.
  
  
• A supply of supplementary roof support materials and the tools and equipment necessary to install the materials should be available at a readily accessible location on working sections.
  
  
• Posts or jacks should be installed as temporary supports when accessing immobilized equipment inby permanent roof supports.
  
  
• Adequate training should be provided for persons who install temporary roof supports.

	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 25^th fatality reported in calendar year 2000 in the coal mining industry. As of this date in 1999, there were 25 fatalities. This is the third Roof/Rib Fall type of fatal accident reported in the mining industry in 2000. At this time in 1999 there were eight Roof/Rib Fall type of accidents reported in the mining industry.

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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:
MSHA's Fatal Accident Investigation Report