August 1, 1996

MINING OPERATIONS RECOGNIZED FOR OUTSTANDING SAFETY RECORDS; REGIONAL COMPANIES AMONG THOSE CITED

Eight mining operations have been honored for their outstanding 1995 safety records in the annual Sentinels of Safety awards program co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) and the National Mining Association (NMA).

Mining companies in various operational categories were recognized for achieving the greatest number of employee work-hours in 1995 without an injury that resulted in lost workdays. To have qualified, a company had to compile at least 30,000 employee work-hours during the year without a lost-time injury or fatality.

"Working in a mine presents extraordinary challenges every day," said J. Davitt McAteer, assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health. "But by amassing thousands of work-hours without injury or death, these companies have proved you needn't sacrifice safety in the name of production."

The sentinels award is the oldest, established award for occupational safety. The first Sentinels of Safety award was announced by former President Herbert Hoover, a mining engineer, when he was secretary of commerce in 1925. The annual safety competition has continued uninterrupted to the present day.

First-place winners and their number of consecutive employee-hours recorded in each of the mining categories are:

Underground Coal Group
Freedom Mine, Ohio County Coal Company, Inc.,
Henderson, KY,
213,878 hours.

Surface Coal Group
Colowyo Mine, Colowyo Coal Company, L.P.,
Meeker, CO,
625,822 hours.

Underground Metal Group
Fletcher Mine and Mill, The Doe Run Company,
Viburnum, MO,
157,758 hours.

Underground Nonmetal Group
Big Island Mine & Refinery, OCI Wyoming, L.P.,
Green River, WY,
327,660 hours.

Open Pit Group
Tyrone Mine & Mill, Phelps Dodge Mining Company,
Tyrone, NM,
809,532 hours.

Quarry Group
Pennsuco Quarry, Tarmac Florida, Inc.,
Medley, FL,
294,196 hours.

Sand and Gravel Bank or Pit Group
Pit and Plant No. 4, Capitol Aggregates, Inc.,
Austin, TX,
108,301 hours.

Sand and Gravel Dredge Group
Blue Roan Bend 02-01, Pioneer Concrete of Texas, Inc.,
Garwood, TX,
103,876 hours.

Other mining operations with exceptional safety records during 1995 included the following:

Underground Coal Group
Huff Creek No. 1, Lone Mountain Processing, Inc., Holms Mill, KY, 188,843 hours.
Darby Fork No. 1, Lone Mountain Processing, Inc., Holms Mill, KY, 162,283 hours.
Castle Mine, Elk Run Coal Company, Inc., Sylvester, WV, 135,596 hours.
Dominion No. 16, Dominion Coal Corporation, Vansant, VA, 98,227 hours.

Surface Coal Group
Wylo Mine, Arch of West Virginia, Yolyn, WV, 369,887 hours.
North Antelope Mine, Powder River Coal Company, Gillette, WY, 363,723 hours.
Tower Mountain Surface Mine, Elkay Mining Company, Lyburn, WV, 279,683 hours.
Colony Bay Surface Mine, Colony Bay Coal Company, Wharton, WV, 235,931 hours.

Underground Metal Group
West Fork Unit, ASARCO, Inc., Bunker, MO, 140,421 hours.
Jefferson City Mine, Savage Zinc, Inc., Jefferson City, TN, 129,154 hours.
Viburnum # 28 Mine/Mill, The Doe Run Company, Viburnum, MO, 118,124 hours.
Clinch Valley Mine, Savage Zinc, Inc., Thorn Hill, TN, 93,036 hours.

Underground Nonmetal Group
Greer Mine & Mill, Greer Limestone Company, Morgantown, WV, 131,186 hours.
Sperry Mine, United States Gypsum Company, Sperry, IA, 105,561 hours.
Kentucky Avenue Mine, Martin Marietta Aggregates, Indianapolis, IN, 91,242 hours.
Shoals Mine, U. S. Gypsum Company, Shoals, IN, 81,866 hours.

Open Pit Group
The Wharf Mine, Wharf Resources, USA, Inc., Lead, SD, 292,360 hours.
DuPont Florida Mine & Plant, E. I. duPont de Nemours & Co., Inc., Starke, FL, 291,833 hours.
Payne Creek Mine, IMC Agrico Company, Bradley, FL, 234,712 hours.
Magma Open Pit, BHP Copper-North America, San Manuel, AZ, 218,891 hours.

Quarry Group
McCook Quarry & Mill, Vulcan Materials Company, McCook, IL, 143,304 hours.
Three Rivers Quarry, Martin Marietta Aggregates, Smithland, KY, 134,196 hours.
Mc Kelligon Canyon Quarry, Jobe Concrete Products, Inc., El Paso, Tx, 109,511 hours.
Central Valley Aggregates, Glenn O. Hawbaker, Inc., State College, PA, 86,722 hours.

Sand and Gravel Bank or Pit Group
Laurel Operation, Laurel Sand & Gravel, Inc., Laurel, MD, 98,041 hours.
Warner Company, Waste Management, Morrisville, PA, 90,791 hours.
Rollo Pit, Atlanta Sand & Supply, Roberta, GA, 88,834 hours.
Georgia Silica Division, The Morie Company, Inc., Junction City, GA, 84,904 hours.

Sand and Gravel Dredge Group
Porter Plant & Pit, Hallett Materials, Porter, TX, 90,158 hours.
Lower Burrell Plant, Davison Sand & Gravel Co., New Kensington, PA, 78,090 hours.
Joshua Mine, Standard Sand & Silica Co., Davenport, FL, 63,104 hours.
Greenville Plant and Dredge, Greenville Gravel Company, Greenville, MS, 59,185 hours.