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52 www.coalage.com August 2016 captain mine fire continued got so hot I had to climb to the top of the gantry." Miller continued to describe the scene, "By now it was completely dark, and the welder on the roof was trapped. The elec- trical system had kicked out, and fortu- nately for him that didn't happen when he was in the electrically powered eleva- tor. And he couldn't gain access down the house ladders or enter the house because of the intensity of smoke and heat. He was in a dangerous situation because there was a lot of combustible oil products on board the machine." The hydraulic system, which caught fire first, contained 8,000 gallons of hydraulic fluid. There was also a 1,000-gallon diesel fuel tank, 1,000 lb of grease in the automatic grease system, and 1,000 gallons of solvent in drums. For about the first half hour after the fire chief arrived, as he later reported, there was much confusion. Mine workers on shift frantically attempted to do things on their own, giving conflicting instruc- tions to firefighters and lacking authority to obtain additional equipment as needed. In the panic, it was reported that one of the mine foremen drove off the coal seam in the dark and overturned his truck, but was not injured. Eventually, a command post was established in the Steeleville fire department's emergency vehicle. In addi- tion to the fire brigades' vehicles, the mine contributed mobile water tankers, lifting equipment, and a boom truck with man basket. The initial strategy was to set up a water supply and a deluge gun to try and cool the metal. An aerial ladder was set up, but this was not high enough to rescue Andrews on the roof who had retreated up the gantry to escape the smoke. Fire Chief Bennett later reported, "The fire was com- ing out all around the lower frame, some 30 ft off the ground. The fire looked like a very big gas stove burner with the largest pot you have ever seen sitting on it." Miller reported, "I was able to talk Gary into putting on a safety harness and snapping it onto one of the 2-in. boom suspension cables which run from the top of the gantry to the top of the boom. This he did, and then cautiously made his way to top of the boom by walking on one of the other cables. Of course, he had to temporarily unsnap the harness as he negotiated each of the stabiliz- er blocks separating the pairs of ropes. Once on top of the boom, some 21 sto- ries skyward, he was able to walk down the boom steps until he could be reached by the man basket. He was then lifted to safety. Fred Kruger came up the boom to meet me. He was hoisted in the man basket to the lower part of the boom and then walked to the top. He came up to make sure I was alright after my ordeal climbing up the suspension rope, and he helped me down to safety." Miller recalled, "I stayed about three hours after my shift finished at midnight. The fire was almost out by 2 a.m., but the heat melted the seals in the swing gear cas- es, releasing the oil which fed the fire back to life. It burned for another three hours and was finally out by about 5 a.m." Aftermath Miller described the scene the day after the fire when the Captain could be inspected in daylight. "Looking at the 6360 from a distance, it was hard to imagine the hor- rors and intensity of the fire the night be- fore. Except for some blackened areas at the bottom of the house and some lower steel panels missing, the machine looked normal." he said, "The lower works were definitely charred and blackened, but on climbing up into the machinery house and cab, everything appeared unaffected ex- cept for smoke residue." So at first inspection, it appeared the damage was confined to the lower works and a project was commenced to esti- mate the cost of repair. At the same time, a replacement machine was needed im- mediately to take over. The giant 6360 shovel worked in the same pit in tandem with the Bucyrus-Erie 5872-WX, world's largest cross-pit bucket wheel excavator. Without the 6360, this 700-ft long, 5,380- ton monster, and a lot of other equip- ment including drills, parting shovels, coal loading shovels, trucks, loaders and dozers would soon run out of work. So it Standing forlorn after the fire, the Captain shovel shows relatively little damage, but the lower works are Standing forlorn after the fire, the Captain shovel shows relatively little damage, but the lower works are gutted. The Marion 6360 sign peeling off the machine foretells the machine's fate. (Photo: Eric C. Orlemann) "She was a wonderful machine; nothing could touch her when it came to production. When I was on her, we regularly dug a complete pit one mile long from end to end in only 10 days. We regularly turned in production numbers showing more than 7,000 cubic yards per hour. "