On January 2nd, 2006, 12 coal miners lost their lives in West Virginia. A 13th suffered critical injuries. Before the month was through, two more West Virginia miners lost their lives after fire trapped them in the mine they were working in.  Now, as is usually the case after events like these, more stringent safety laws are being examined, along with heavier fines, and tougher regulations. But why do we have to always make the changes after a tragedy?   

My Perspective on SAGO

I am no expert on mining. I've never even been inside a mine. Nor do I personally know anybody who works inside of one. You see, I grew up in a place where there aren't any mines.

But I do know something about safety. I work on large construction projects as a safety professional. I am also familiar with what it means when a company has 208 citations. That's how many citations there apparently were at the SAGO mine, the site of the first West Virginia tragedy. Seventeen of those citations were serious; so I guess the other 191 were just "minor citations." You don't have to be a mining expert to know that that's a lot of citations, especially when you consider they had 68 the year before. 

Another red flag: SAGO's employee injury rate for 2005 was 17.4, three times the national average of 6.54.

Some have credited SAGO with making changes before the explosion. Maybe the company was headed in the right direction, safety-wise. But the MSHA inspectors were there almost every day towards the end of the year, and their inspection hours were up 84% from 2004 to 2005.

Trying to Make Sense of the Tragedy

So what went wrong? 

Company officials are claiming that none of the violations were connected to or caused the explosion. Hopefully, the Congressional hearings and in-depth investigation now taking place will reveal some answers.

One thing I do find interesting, that in this day and age, where we send people to the moon, and talk to each other instantly over email, miners' lives are relying on technology that was introduced in 1966. During the inquiry, a handheld tracking device, which would tell exactly where each miner is located underground, was displayed. It costs all of $20. Sadly, it's currently being used in only14 of the 15,000 mines. 

The miners also have breathing devices that give them oxygen for approximately one hour. The rescue efforts took 40 hours. MSHA was reviewing the upgrading of oxygen devices, and oxygen stations back in the early 1990's, but removed it from the agenda a few years back.  Now, of course, they are reconsidering that decision. 

And lastly, there is an appeals process for fines that can currently be negotiated. Senator Specter (R-Pa) referred to it during the inquiry, and cited an example of a company in charge of a mine in Alabama, where 13 people were killed in 2001, and the appealed fine was reduced from $435,000 to $3,000. 

Conclusion: A Reflection on Values

The West Virginia incident has forced me, as a safety professional, to do some soul searching about the role of safety within a business organization. Should the mine, or sections of the mine have been shut down to correct whatever caused the 208 citations at the SAGO mines? At this point, all we can do is speculate.

But just for argument's sake, let's say that the answer is yes and that there was evidence to suggest that an explosion was likely to occur. There would have been a lot of pressure to keep the mines open -- a smaller pay check for the workers, lost production for the company, among other things.  

Next time someone on your site, or in your plant, wants to do something that's in a "gray" area to save time and money, don't just think about the praise you will get for the time and money saved. Think also about the consequences of what will happen if something goes wrong.  Just take a second and put yourself in the future, sitting in front of a judge explaining why you allowed the shortcut to take place.

COAL MINE CATASTROPHES

By Glenn Demby

Sadly, the recent West Virginia mine disasters are only the most recent chapter in a long history of coal mining catastrophes. Here's a look at just a few of them and the legacy they wrought.

Scofield, Utah, 1900

200 miners, most of them immigrants, are killed in an explosion apparently detonated by a powder keg. Many of the current U.S. mining safety laws were enacted in response to the Scofield disaster.

Monongah, West Virginia, 1907  

An explosion at the Fairmont Coal Company mine kills 362 men and boys. It is the most deadly mining accident in U.S. history.

Farmington, West Virginia, 1968

Fire and explosion inside a "gassy" mine kills 78. The mine had to be sealed to control the fire. It was only a year later that the mine was reopened, the bodies recovered and the cause investigated. Unfortunately, the cause was never found.

Plymouth, Nova Scotia, 1992

Explosion and fire kill 26 miners in a mine operated by Westray Mining. The explosion was the result of a buildup of methane gases and coal dust, although the source of the spark was never found. Company officials were prosecuted for allowing work to proceed despite knowing about the danger. All were acquitted on a technicality. In response, Canada passed a new law called Bill C-45 which, effective March 31, 2004, makes it a crime for companies and individuals to neglect workplace safety out of wanton and reckless disregard for life and safety.

MEMBER REPLY

Get Your NASCAR Facts Right

There were a number of errors in Friday's article about NASCAR driver deaths:

The article states that Dale Earnhardt hit the wall head on at Daytona. He didn't; he hit it at an angle such that it was equivalent to a 45 mph head on collision. In addition, he had his belts installed in a 'comfortable' way, against the manufacturer's instructions.

The article also makes it sound as if there weren't safety requirements in NASCAR before the Earnhardt death. This is completely untrue. There were numerous safety requirements, especially the seat belts but also the cage-type construction, drivers' seats set well inside from the door, window mesh (resulting from a Richard Petty crash), roof flaps, fuel cells. Additionally, the article completely overlooks safety contributions from other motor sports, such as Champ cars (the kind that used to race at Indianapolis, including extrication devices,safety crews, and rear view mirrors) and Formula 1 (fuel cells, crush zones, wheel retaining cables).

Jack R. Crais
Safety Coordinator
HSEQ

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