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MSHA Publishes Final Rescue Team Rules

April 11th, 2008 Posted by Amelia

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) recently published a final rule in the Federal Register that revises existing standards for mine rescue teams for underground coal mines.

The changes to the mine rescue strategy are a direct result of last year’s tragic failed rescue mission at Crandall Canyon mine in Emory, Utah. That effort was led by Richard Stickler, MSHA Acting Assistant Secretary for Mine Safety.

The MSHA final rule implements Section 4 of the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response (MINER) Act of 2006 to improve overall mine rescue capability, mine emergency response time and mine rescue team effectiveness.

Another change to the law calls for increased quantity and quality of mine rescue team training.

“The presence of qualified, well-trained mine rescue teams is one of our greatest assets during a mine emergency,” said Richard E. Stickler, Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health. “This regulation will help ensure that no matter where or when a mine accident occurs, dedicated men and women will be readily available and properly trained to assist in the rescue of their comrades underground.”

Reportedly, one of the problems at Crandall Canyon was that rescue team members were unavailable or poorly trained.

The new regulations for rescue teams include:

Requires a person knowledgeable in mine emergency response be present at each mine on each shift and receive annual emergency response training using an MSHA-prescribed course.

Requires two certified mine rescue teams for each mine and includes criteria for certifying the qualifications of a mine rescue team.

Requires mine rescue team members be available at the mine within one hour from the mine rescue station.

Requires team members to participate in training at each mine serviced by the team (a portion of which must be conducted underground), and be familiar with the operations and ventilation of the mine.

Requires team members to participate annually in two local mine rescue contests.

Provides for four types of mine rescue teams: mine-site, composite, contract and state-sponsored.

Requires annual training in smoke, simulated smoke or an equivalent environment.

Increases required training from 40 to 96 hours annually.

The final rules were published after MSHA held four public hearings in Salt Lake City, Utah; Lexington, Ky.; Charleston, W.Va.; and Birmingham, Ala. In response to a request from the public, MSHA extended the comment period from Nov. 9, 2007, to Nov. 16, 2007.

In 2006, the United States experienced two tragic mining accidents. Early in the year in Melville, West Virginia, a fire broke out at the Aracoma Alma Mine. Smoke filled the escape routes and two miners were killed. Later, the Darby Mine No.1 mine in Kentucky suffered an explosion which killed five workers.

On June 15, 2006, the MINER Act was signed into law. According to MSHA, the U. S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration, the MINER Act made significant improvements in safety for miners across the nation.

“The MINER Act was the most significant federal mine safety law in nearly 30 years, and we at MSHA are fully committed to putting its protections in place for America’s miners,” said Richard E. Stickler, assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health. “MSHA has made great strides in implementing the MINER Act in the past year, and we are continuing to meet or beat the deadlines set by the act.”

Though the MINER Act introduced major changes in the ways the mining industry does business, the Act couldn’t prevent the 2007 Crandall Canyon coal mine accident at Emory County, Utah.

The Crandall Canyon mine collapsed, trapping 6 miners. Initially, reports indicated the miners were trapped in a safe area, one with enough air, potable water and emergency food supplies.

Unfortunately, the Crandall Canyon rescue attempts were unsuccessful. Ten days into the rescue three additional miners were killed as well. None of the original 6 miners were recovered, and the mountain basically fell in on itself.