Latest Mining Headlines
All the headlines from our Mining Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Coal Industry Group Launches Mine Safety Effort
Jan 14 2009 // The National Mining Association is launching a new campaign it hopes will help keep underground coal miners safe. The “Stay Away, Stay Alive” initiative is aimed at reducing accidents and deaths related to...
Family of Utah Mine Collapse Victim Awarded Money
Jan 6 2009 // A coal company has been ordered to pay full benefits to the family of one of the six miners killed in the 2007 collapse of the Crandall Canyon mine. An administrative judge for the Utah Labor Commission ordered Genwal...
Rates Fall for Mine Subsidence Insurance in Pennsylvania
Dec 31 2008 // Staring tomorrow, homeowners and commercial building owners in Pennsylvania can take advantage of substantially lower rates for mine subsidence insurance, making it more affordable to protect against catastrophic damage...
Inspector Shortage Hampers West Virginia Coal Mine Safety Effort
Dec 30 2008 // An inability to retain inspectors is hurting West Virginia’s efforts to make the inherently dangerous business of coal mining safer. Faced with a turnover rate topping 20 percent, the state is scrambling — for...
U.S. Safety Agency Wants Coal Mines to Develop Communications Plan
Dec 22 2008 // America’s 600 underground coal mines would have to spend an estimated $278 million installing sophisticated electronic communications and tracking equipment under a new federal proposal requiring operators to file...
Panel to Hear Appeal in Maryland Mine Collapse
Dec 17 2008 // The Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission is scheduled next month to hear Tri-Star Mining’s appeal of three citations and $180,000 in fines that were imposed after two workers were killed at the Barton...
Federal Inspectors Complete Safety Reviews of Nation’s Mines
Dec 12 2008 // For the first time, federal inspectors have completed mandatory safety reviews of all the nation’s mines within a single year, the head of the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration said. Mine safety chief...
West Virginia Miners’ Widows Press Claims Against Massey Energy
Nov 12 2008 // Lawyers in a suit stemming from a fatal fire at a Massey Energy coal mine 2006 clashed this week over whether the deaths of two men could have been averted. Bruce Stanley, representing the widows of both men, told a Logan...
Vermont Warns Residents of Asbestos Danger at Old Mines
Nov 10 2008 // The state of Vermont is warning people to stay away from an abandoned asbestos mine in Eden and Lowell because of the health threat posed by asbestos. Scientists studied health records and death certificates from towns...
Gas Ignites, 2 Miners Burned at West Virginia Coal Mine
Nov 5 2008 // Two coal miners were burned on their faces and arms Nov. 3 when gas ignited, creating a brief flash of fire at a mine in northern West Virginia. The Whitetail Kittanning Mine was shut down and two investigators were sent...
Mock Disaster Reveals Preparedness of Kentucky Miners
Nov 4 2008 // Recently, miners at Mosley Spur Mine in Middlesboro, Ky. took steps to ensure that if there is ever an emergency, they will be prepared. “I don’t know if you can ever be fully prepared (for a disaster),”...
7 Miners Injured in West Virginia when Vehicle Derails, Crashes
Oct 14 2008 // Seven miners were injured when their underground transport vehicle jumped its tracks and crashed at the Round Bottom Mine in Sylvester, W.Va. Authorities said the mantrip accident happened at 11:45 p.m. on Oct. 10 near the...
1 Person Killed in West Virginia Mine
Oct 10 2008 // A contract worker has been killed at a Massey Energy mine in West Virginia. State Office of Miners’ Health Safety and Training spokeswoman Jama Jarrett says apprentice miner Steven Cain was pinned between the wall...
Company: Dead Miner’s Family Fight is With Insurer
Sep 30 2008 // The mining company faulted for a cave-in that killed six miners in 2007 says it has no position on a worker’s compensation claim filed by the family of one of the victims. Genwal Resources Inc., a subsidiary of...
3 Kentucky Miners Accused of Violating Mine Safety Act
Sep 26 2008 // Three eastern Kentucky miners are indicted on two counts each of violating the federal Mine Safety Act. Ira Sergent, Johnny Osborne and Reggie Raleigh worked at the Stillhouse Mining No. 1 Mine in Harlan County, Ky. The...
West Virginia Mines Make Progress on Refuge Chambers
Sep 15 2008 // Manufacturers delivered nearly 200 airtight refuge chambers to West Virginia coal mines. State regulators became the first in the nation to mandate the chambers after 12 trapped men died after a January 2006 explosion at...
Feds: Civil Suits Unaffected by Mine Investigation
Sep 10 2008 // Federal officials say a criminal investigation of the Crandall Canyon, Utah, mine disaster doesn’t preclude civil suits against those associated with the mine. The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration asked...
Feds Hire More than 300 New Coal Mine Safety Inspectors
Aug 21 2008 // The federal agency responsible for mine safety has hired more than 300 inspectors in the past two years to scour underground coal operations for unsafe working conditions. The Mine Safety and Health Administration is...
West Virginia Mine Closed Pending Safety Investigation
Aug 18 2008 // A West Virginia coal mine where two scoop accidents occurred within three months, including one fatal, has been closed during an investigation into the most recent incident. The West Virginia Office of Miners’...
3 West Virginia Miners Injured in Barbour County Accident
Aug 13 2008 // Three miners in West Virginia sustained injuries in a scoop accident at a Barbour County mine where an 18-year-old contractor’s apprentice was run over and killed by a scoop in May. Office of Miners’ Health,...
