Investigators Conclude Crushed Kentucky Miner Not Wearing Safety Device

Federal investigators have concluded that a worker crushed to death by a machine at a Kentucky coal mine earlier this year wasn’t wearing an emergency shut-off device, and that his managers had not provided a way to securely attach it.

Citing a U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration report, the Lexington Herald-Leader says managers at Webster County Coal’s Dotiki Mine knew about the problem but didn’t address it, potentially exposing the company to a higher fine.

Thirty-six-year-old Nathan Phillips was pinned to a wall while trying to move a continuous-mining machine in January. The report said his transmitter, designed to shut off the machine if he got too close, had been on the floor of the mine for about a half-hour before he was killed.