Fatality #1 - January 8, 2008

At approimately 12:45 a.m., on Tuesday, January 8, 2008, Roy D. Sturgill, a 29-year old contract miner with 3 years of total mining eperience and 4 weeks of eperience at the mine was fatally injured in a powered haulage accident. The accident occurred as the victim was dumping spoil material on the H Pit Level, of the Joe Day Branch area of the mine site. The victim was operating a Caterpillar 777B rock truck when he backed over the dump point and continued down the slope for approimately 140 feet. The truck broke into two pieces, and came to rest with the cab of the truck facing up the slope and the bed upside down facing down the slope. The victim was ejected from the truck and sustained fatal injuries. 



The fatality occurred because the operator failed to provide adequate berms and failed to assure that seat belts were used by equipment operators. The berm was inadequate both in height and in the materials used to construct it. The berm appeared to have been used as a bump stop. When the berm failed, the truck traveled down the slope and the operator was ejected from the truck. When the truck cab was eamined the seat belt was not buckled indicating it was not in use at the time of the accident.