MSHA Seeks Closure (1st ever) of Massey Kentucky Mine for Pattern of Safety Violations

[Omaha Steve]

http://blog.aflcio.org/2010/11/04/msha-seeks-closure-of-massey-kentucky-mine-for-pattern-of-safety-violations/

by Mike Hall, Nov 4, 2010


A Massey Energy Co.-owned mine in Kentucky, which has amassed nearly 2,000 safety violations since June 2008, is “one accident away from tragedy” and needs to be shut down, say federal mine safety officials.

No coal mine has ever been shut down for a pattern of safety violations, but the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) asked a federal court yesterday to shut down a mine—Freedom Energy’s Mine No. 1 in Pike County. Says MSHA administrator Joe Main:

Freedom Energy has demonstrated time and again that it cannot be trusted to follow basic safety rules when an MSHA inspector is not at the mine. If the court does not step in, someone may be seriously injured or die.

Freedom Energy is a Massey subsidiary.

MSHA says the mine operates in a coal seam “that liberates massive amounts of methane gas” and has been cited for excessive accumulations of explosive methane and coal dust, failure to ventilate methane, failure to protect against roof and rib (mine sides) collapses, failure to test and maintain electrical equipment, among the 1,952 safety violations. MSHA also ordered portions of the mine shut 53 times this year for major safety violations.

In the past two years, seven miners have been injured at this operation as a result of a collapsing roof. Moreover, since Aug. 11, 2010, six major roof falls have occurred in the mine.

The mine safety agency says it has met numerous times with upper mine management to correct the safety problems, but

the inspections, citations and meetings with mine management have not resulted in changes in behavior.

FULL story at link.

[elleng]

1. Thanks for posting. Heard about this, but hadn't seen it.