Groundman

Employee was underneath Conveyor Belt and became entangled.

Texto original en inglés de la MSHA

On December 3, 2021, at 9:19 a.m., Richard Crum, a 62 year-old ground man with 27 years of mining experience, died when he became entangled in a belt conveyor return idler. The accident occurred because the mine operator did not: 1) assure that equipment was de-energized and blocked against hazardous motion before engaging in maintenance or repairs, 2) have guards in place to prevent miners from becoming entangled in moving machine parts, and 3) assure that adequate pre-operational inspections on equipment were conducted prior to operating equipment.

1. The mine operator did not assure that equipment was de-energized and blocked against hazardous motion before engaging in maintenance or repairs.

   Acción correctiva: The mine operator developed a new written procedure for cleaning and performing maintenance on belt conveyors. The procedure requires that the belt conveyor be de-energized, locked and tagged out, tested to assure it is de-energized, and blocked against hazardous motion, before removing guards or performing cleaning or maintenance. The mine operator trained all miners in the procedure and provided locks and tags for each miner.

2. The mine operator did not guard moving machine parts to prevent miners from becoming entangled.

   Acción correctiva: The mine operator installed guards on the portable crusher to prevent entanglement with moving machine parts.

3. The mine operator did not assure that adequate pre-operational inspections on equipment were conducted prior to operating equipment.

   Acción correctiva: The mine operator developed and implemented a procedure concerning pre-operational inspections. The procedure explained the purpose of pre-operational inspections, which equipment must be inspected, the items on the equipment to be inspected, and how to address safety defects. The mine operator trained the miners on this procedure.

Lee el informe completo (PDF)

Hallazgos del informe final de investigación de la MSHA, que sustituye la narrativa preliminar anterior.

Actividad al momento del incidente

Handling Coal, Rock, Ore

Subunidad / ubicación

STRIP, QUARY, OPEN PIT

Tipo de accidente

Atrapado en, bajo o entre objetos en movimiento o engranados

Fuente de la lesión

BELT CONVEYORS

Naturaleza de la lesión

MULTIPLE INJURIES

Parte del cuerpo afectada

MULTIPLE PARTS (MORE THAN ONE MAJOR)

Experiencia minera total

27 years

Experiencia en esta mina

14 years

Experiencia en este puesto

14 years

Grado de la lesión

FATALITY