mine safety

14 Stories

Trapped Miner's Body Recovered

Larry Marek, 53, died after cave-in

(Newser) - After nine days, workers yesterday recovered the body of Larry Marek, who was trapped during a cave-in in an Idaho silver mine. Marek and his brother, Mike, had just finished watering down blasted-out rock and ore in the mine on April 15 when the ceiling collapsed in a 6,150-foot-deep...

Rescuers Work Through Night, But Miner Still Trapped

Digging machine could help speed up efforts

(Newser) - Rescuers worked through the night and were still at it today, but a man trapped in an Idaho mine since Friday remains underground. A remote-controlled digging machine was brought in today, the AP reports, but it must be disassembled and then reassembled more than a mile below ground, and it’...

Third Explosion Shakes New Zealand Mine

Prime minister plans memorial service for 29 lost miners

(Newser) - A third explosion has rattled the New Zealand coal mine where 29 workers were lost this week, the Wall Street Journal reports. The latest blast was the smallest and “isn't likely to impede any work out there,” police said. Prime minister John Key today announced a Dec. 2...

New Zealand Mourns 29 Lost Miners

But mine should reopen, civic leaders say

(Newser) - As New Zealand mourns the 29 miners lost in Tuesday’s second explosion , civic leaders are already calling for the mine to be reopened. "A big part of our economy on the west coast is coal and, yes, we want our men back down the mine working,” says...

Chinese Mine Blast Kills 20, Traps 17

Gas-filled mine fraught with danger for rescuers

(Newser) - It's a good time to not be a miner: Mere days after Chile pulled off its rescue, Chinese officials are fighting perilous conditions to rescue 17 miners trapped underground after an explosion in a coal mine that killed at least 20. Gas levels nearing 40% inside the mine and the...

Obama Eulogizes W.Va. Miners

In praising 29 men who died in explosion, president criticizes safety sustem

(Newser) - President Obama paid tribute this afternoon to the miners who died in the explosion at the Upper Big Branch mine in West Virginia, implicitly criticizing the mine-safety system as he celebrated the lives of the 29 men who perished, reports the Hill . "How can we fail them?" he asked....

Feds Run Surprise Inspections on 57 Coal Mines

For some reason, they're worried they might be dangerous

(Newser) - Nearly 60 problem coal mines have been hit with surprise inspections aimed at preventing another explosion like the one that killed 29 miners in West Virginia, the nation's chief mine safety regulator said yesterday. The raids targeted 57 mines with a history of violations, the Mine Safety and Health Administration...

Coal Mines Blow Off Safety Fines

US operations have almost $90m in unpaid

(Newser) - US coal mining operations have racked up plenty of safety regulations in recent years, but they simply haven’t bothered to pay thee resulting fines. Of the $113 million in major penalties the federal government has dished out over the past 3 years, coal companies have paid just $8 million,...

Fed Mine Safety Agency Riddled With Problems

'Miners' lives are in the crosshairs'

(Newser) - Untrained recruits perform mine inspections, the majority of veteran inspectors skip out on mandatory retraining, and a backlog of appeals is growing at the troubled federal mine safety agency. A government audit released just days before this week's deadly West Virginia mine explosion found lax enforcement rampant in the Mining...

Deadly Mine Collapse Draws Record Fine

Weak pillars, dangerous areas linked to Utah deaths

(Newser) - The federal government has socked a Utah mine operator and its consultant with the highest fine ever—$1.85 million—for safety violations in a mine collapse that killed six men last year. Investigators said weak pillar support and work in dangerous areas of the Crandell Canyon mine led to...

Report: Utah Mine Collapse Was Avoidable

Company, feds faulted for ignoring 'red flags' about tenuous section

(Newser) - Mining officials concealed information that could have prevented the deaths of nine miners in Utah last year, says a congressional report out today. The August disaster followed the collapse of a nearby section of the mine, which indicated that the terrain was unsafe—but officials at the Crandall Mine didn’...

Probe Blames Feds for Utah Mine Horror

Labor Dept. cites negligence by mine safety agency

(Newser) - A federal probe into a Utah mine disaster that killed nine people has accused the federal agency overseeing mine safety of negligence. The finding by the Labor Department's Office of Inspector General does not rule out the possibility that the owner of the site used undue influence on the Mine...

24 Dead in China Mine Blast
24 Dead in China Mine Blast
Feb 18, 2008 7:12 PM CST

24 Dead in China Mine Blast

Owners disguised site as boar farm to dupe officials

(Newser) - Twenty-four people died and five were wounded in a blast at an illegal iron mine in China yesterday, Xinhua reports. Mine owners, who fled the scene, had masked the site as a boar farm to dupe authorities. "The owner has violated the law by illegally exploring the state-owned resources,...

3,000 Mine Workers Trapped
3,000 Mine Workers Trapped
Oct 3, 2007 4:52 PM CDT

3,000 Mine Workers Trapped

Men under 1.4-mile shaft may be losing air, union spokesman fears

(Newser) - More than 3,000 mine workers are trapped in South Africa after a broken water pipe collapsed a key shaft, MSNBC reports. Managers at Harmony Gold Mining, the world's third-largest gold producer, reported no injuries and promised to rescue the men within 24 hours. A spokeswoman said the pipe broke...

14 Stories
Most Read on Newser