About the Campaign
Stay Out – Stay Alive is a national public awareness campaign aimed at warning children and adults about the dangers of exploring and playing on active and abandoned mine sites. Launched by MSHA in 1999, the campaign is a partnership of federal and state agencies, private organizations, businesses and individuals.
Each year, dozens of people are injured or killed in recreational accidents at abandoned quarries, mines and pits. Through the Stay Out – Stay Alive campaign, MSHA and its partners visit schools, communities and youth organizations around the country to educate children, adults and communities at large about the hidden hazards that await the unsuspecting hiker, off-roader or swimmer.
Contact Information
For further information on the Stay Out - Stay Alive program, please contact us at AskMSHA@dol.gov.
To report unsafe public mine access, abandoned mine emergencies or abandoned mine locations, call the MSHA Hotline at: (800) 746-1553
Recent Accidents
View recent fatal and non-fatal accidents
- Below is a sampling of recent fatal and non-fatal accidents that occurred at active and abandoned mine properties in the US. This is not a comprehensive list of all accidents that have occurred, but rather a representative sample to illustrate how dangerous these properties can be. Remember: Stay Out – Stay Alive.
Listing of recent fatal and non-fatal accidents Date
State
Article
Sex
Age
12/20/2017
CO
M
15
6/12/2017
NJ
M
17
6/11/2017
WV
Teen who drowned after swimming in Berkeley County quarry is identified
M
early 20s
5/27/2017
FL
M
18
5/23/2017
OH
Columbus youth’s death at quarry prompts vigil – and discussion about safety
M
5/20/2017
OH
M
15
5/8/2017
UT
Man rescued from deep inside open mine shaft after UTV accident
M
4/15/2017
TN
Search crews called off possible drowning at Knoxville quarry
12/19/2016
VT
Police positively ID body recovered from VT quarry as missing woman Hadil Marzouq
F
21
11/18/2016
IA
F
23
9/02/2016
WV
M
30
8/17/2016
PA
Here's why N.J. mom posted son's photo outside abandoned quarry
M
19
7/27/2016
RI
7/25/2016
ME
M
26
7/18/2016
PA
Howell Man Who Died During Pa. Quarry Swim Identified: Reports
M
20
6/6/2016
PA
M & F
17 - 19
5/28/2016
TN
Cocke County Sheriff's Office investigating accidental drowning
M
14
10/14/2015
OH
M
F
M27
31
249/12/2015
PA
M
19
8/2/2015
PA
M
20
7/8/2015
KY
Man seriously injured in fall
M
6/13/2015
OK
M
M17
185/24/2015
RI
M
28
1/9/2015
UT
Sheriff: Wife finds husband's body in mine shaft, Utah officials investigating cause of death
M
70
7/13/2014
MA
M
18
7/8/2014
VA
M
18
7/7/2014
MA, RI
Several fatal incidents reported at local quarries over past decade
7/3/2014
VA
M
21
4/12/2014
NH
Boy, 14, injured in 20-foot fall in Allenstown
M
14
11/6/2013
CA
M
61