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As 2014 came to a close and all the data was tallied, the message was clear: although not at the zero-incident goal as an industry, progress is being made. Mining as a whole, unfortunately, did not meet a record — a majority of the 40 deaths over the last calendar year were in the metal/nonmetal sector — but coal came closer than any other year in recorded history with 16 confirmed fatal accidents. It goes without saying that 16 coal deaths is 16 too many. However, it also speaks to a safety culture that is, by and large, an industry- wide paradigm shift that continues to bear results with each day. Changing regulations aside, it is no longer acceptable to the U.S. mining community to log hundreds of fatal accidents, as was the case a century ago; knowledge and experience has brought about some of the best safety technology in any industrial trade and are unquestionably putting it to good use. The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), tasked with oversight of all accident data regardless of outcome, said in its recent preliminary release of figures that the most common mining acci- dent causes in 2014 were powered haulage and machinery; five pow- ered haulage and five machinery related deaths occurred in coal mines (powered haulage accounted for eight of the 24 deaths in met- al and nonmetal mining). The final quarter of the year was quite active for mining as a whole, with nine fatalities recorded, but it was steady versus previ- ous periods in coal with four (more detailed information on those fatalities begins below). As the new year has begun, the mood in mining safety can be classi- fied most accurately as cautiously optimistic; while we set a new benchmark in modern worker safety for coal miners, the task now becomes maintaining that progress and keeping that motivation high. "While MSHA and the mining industry have made a number of improvements and have been moving mine safety in the right direc- tion, these deaths, particularly those in the metal and nonmetal industry, makes clear the need to do more to protect our nation's miners," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health Joseph Main in late January. "Advancements in health and safety demand the cooperation of the entire mining community. Miners deserve the reassurance that they will return home safely and healthy after every shift." Part of taking the most from such unfortunate events is examining what occurred so that issues involved in each respective event can be prevented in the future. Trends emerge from some of this data; some details just leave more unanswered questions. There is likely no mine manager out there, however, that would not take back the heartbreak- ing death of a colleague if they could. Putting knowledge of these inci- dents to work for a safer shift tomorrow is the next best thing. More Year-end Details Ten coal mining deaths occurred underground and six occurred at surface operations. Of those, nine and six were at coal operations, respectively. Nearly no coal-rich state was exempt, though the Illinois Basin sustained the least impact from the deaths and West Virginia topped the list with four. All but one respective incident resulted in a single death; only victims four and five at Brody Mining's No. 1 operation in West Virginia were classified as part of a multiple fatality. Midyear versus second-half figures were relatively steady, though several months shared more than one death before the calendar page could turn. Only one operator (Peabody Energy) shared more than one coal incident resulting in a fatality; while months apart, both were at the same Wyoming surface operation. Ten of the 16 were in Appalachia or the Illinois Basin. One event in 2014 was not initially classified as a mining fatality, though it was classified before the end of the calendar year. Recorded as the 16 th victim of the year on December 22 was a male miner that drowned at the Law River Crown Hill Dock facility in West Virginia on April 18 (a final federal investigation report on the findings from that event is still pending). A look at 4Q As Coal Age has done regularly over the year, information has been compiled for each of the events along with the status of preliminary or final findings. In addition to the aforementioned recent classifica- tion by federal officials, four other incidents — three in the east and one in the western coalfields — took four miners' lives. The first, on October 7, occurred at Commonwealth Mining's Tinsley Branch HWM 61 highwall mine in Kentucky. According to preliminary findings, 31-year-old Justin Mize entered a highwall miner entry at the Bell County operation to retrieve the right side cutter head chain for the miner. About 37 ft into the 9.5-ft- wide entry, he was struck by a rock measuring 8 ft by 6 ft wide and 16 in. in thickness. Mize, a 13-year veteran of mining, was extracted from the entry by his crew, then transported to a local hospital where he died from his injuries about five hours later. MSHA has not yet released its final report, but in its fatalgram alert regarding the incident, it stressed staying out from under an unsupported roof. sa f e t y r e p o rt B Y D O N N A S C H M I D T , F I E L D E D I T O R February 2015 www.coalage.com 47 Coal Ends Year at Record Low Fatalities Examining trends in 4Q, whole-year events leading up to a historical benchmark for 2014 Justin Mize was killed in October at Commonwealth Mining's Tinsley Branch HWM 61 highwall mine in Kentucky.