Maintenance Man

Emp a contract worker repairing a Scaler in Mod 12. The emp had fallen to the ground in fetal position, locked arms, clenched fist and bleeding from the ears. The witness did not know if the emp fell from a height or ground level. The injured emp was airlifted. He was lacking oxygen to brain for 10 minutes. He was pronounced dead at 9:45AM on Feb 28.

Courtney J. Johnston, Contract Service Technician, age 27, was seriously injured at this mine on February 27, 2014. Johnston was repairing a hydraulic pump on a scaler when he fell from an attached platform approximately five feet to the ground. He was airlifted to a hospital where he died on February 28, 2014. The accident occurred due to management’s failure to ensure the platform walkway on the scaler was free of slip, trip, and fall hazards. Johnston was not effectively protected from these hazards while working from the upper elevated work platform on the scaler. The scaler had a multi-level platform system. The lower platform was originally constructed and installed by the manufacturer. The upper platform, constructed by the mine operator in June 2013, was affixed to the scaler at the engine compartment. The upper platform was framed in 2-inch wide angle iron and filled with grating for a walking surface. However, the grating wasn’t flush with the top edges of the framing, leaving an approximate 1¾-inch high tripping hazard at the access point. This access point was not provided with a railing, barrier, or cover to prevent a person from a slip, trip, or fall hazard. While outside handrails were provided on both platforms, they were not adequate in preventing a person from falling over the railing where the upper platform transitioned via a step to the lower platform. The handrail height, as a person was positioned at the step, was approximately 32 inches high.

1. Mine management failed to ensure that persons could safely work on the upper platform on the scaler. When the upper platform was constructed, mine management did not ensure that the grating was flush with the top edges of the framing, leaving an approximate 1¾-inch high tripping hazard at the access point that was not provided with a railing, barrier, or cover to prevent a person from a slip, trip, or fall hazard.

   Corrective action: Mine management modified the angle iron to eliminate the tripping hazard at the access point to the upper platform. Additionally, a chain was placed across the opening access as a barrier to prevent persons from falling from the upper platform. The railing on the platform was also modified by adding an additional section at the transition points between the upper and lower platforms.

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

Activity at time of incident

Machine Maintenance

Subunit / location

UNDERGROUND

Underground location

LAST OPEN CROSSCUT

Mining method

Continuous Mining

Accident type

Fall from machine

Source of injury

MINE FLOOR,BOTTOM,FOOTWAL

Nature of injury

CEREBRAL HEMORAGE-NT CCUS

Body part affected

BRAIN

Total mining experience

1 year

Experience at this mine

1 year

Experience in this job

3 years

Degree of injury

FATALITY