Superintendent

The victim was operating an excavator with a rock breaker attachment. He was scaling rock from the highwall face when the face fell onto the cab of excavator crushing him.

William N. Fuller, Mine Owner, age 40, was killed on February 14, 2012, when the excavator he was operating was covered by falling material from a highwall. Fuller was using a rock breaker, attached to the excavator, to break and mine material from a near vertical wall when the face fell onto the cab of the excavator, crushing him. The accident occurred due to management's failure to provide adequate procedures, mining methods, and training to protect persons from falling material. The mining methods employed by management failed to maintain wall, bank, and slope stability in places persons work or travel to perform their assigned tasks. The unconsolidated material was not sloped back to a safe angle and was excavated too steeply to maintain adequate stability. The victim had not received any required MSHA training. Six weeks prior to the accident, the mine manager identified this hazard at the highwall and withdrew miners from it. Three weeks prior to the accident, an equipment operator reported to the mine manager the cracks in the highwall getting larger. The access road below this area was bermed to prevent entry; however, at Fuller's direction, the berm was removed on the day of the accident to construct a pad at the base of the highwall. The mine manager was not at the mine the previous week or the day of the accident. However, on February 6, 2012, he cautioned Fuller regarding the hazardous conditions in this area. Additionally, a person experienced in examining and testing for loose ground was not designated by the mine operator to examine and, where applicable, test ground conditions in areas where work was to be performed prior to work commencing and as ground conditions warrant during the work shift.

1. Management failed to provide adequate procedures that included safe mining methods, required examinations, and training to protect persons working near the vertical walls of unstable material.

   Corrective action: Management established Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for mining loose unconsolidated material at a safe slope angle. Before mining resumed, a blasting contractor was employed to drill and shoot the mounds of harder material to reduce the near vertical walls to a slope angle that was safe to mine. Safe mining methods were established for future mining. These methods include having a person conduct required examinations, and conducting required training for all persons working near the highwalls.

Findings from MSHA's final investigation report, which supersedes the preliminary narrative above.

Activity at time of incident

Power Shovel, Dragline

Subunit / location

STRIP, QUARY, OPEN PIT

Accident type

Caught in, under or between collapsing material or buildings

Source of injury

CAVING ROCK,COAL,ORE,WSTE

Nature of injury

MULTIPLE INJURIES

Body part affected

MULTIPLE PARTS (MORE THAN ONE MAJOR)

Total mining experience

8 years

Experience at this mine

8 years

Experience in this job

8 years

Degree of injury

FATALITY