Barge/Boat/Dredge/Towbarge/Towboat/Leach Operator

Victim was last observed accessing the stern if barge NBN-611. Shortly after, he was noticed to be missing. Snow was present on the barge. Damage or impairment is unknown at this time.

On December 10, 2013, Dustin Burnham, Dredge Deck Hand, age 27, drowned when he fell into the Ohio River. Burnham walked onto barge MEM 611 to measure the amount of material in the barge (take a draft reading) when he lost his footing and fell into the river. A tugboat (Patsy M) was attached to the barge and Roger Fairfield, Tugboat Pilot, saw Burnham in the water. Fairfield disconnected the tugboat from the barge to rescue Burnham who was approximately 20 yards down river when he disappeared below the surface of the water. Burnham had been taking a break in the break room on Dredge IV when Robert Douglas, Dredge Foreman, called on the radio for a draft reading. Douglas was in the control room loading the barge and needed a draft reading to determine if the barge was ready to be moved. Burnham left the break room and walked to the barge. Fairfield saw Burnham get on the barge, but did not watch him as he traveled to the other side of the barge to obtain the draft reading. Typically, miners had to manually check the readings several times each shift to ensure the barge was being loaded correctly. The accident occurred due to management’s failure to ensure that a competent person examine each working place at least one each shift for conditions which may adversely affect safety or health. Accumulations of snow and ice were not removed from the deck of the barge. The snow and ice on the barge covered the barge rigging which created an additional slipping and tripping hazard. Management also failed to enforce a life jacket policy. Persons interviewed stated miners were known to forget or refrain from wearing their life jackets and had to be frequently reminded. Several spare life jackets were available in the break room. Burnham’s life jacket was lying in a chair next to his cell phone. Additionally, management failed to provide a safety belt and line to ensure the victim could not fall into the river.

1. Management failed to provide a safe work environment for the miners on the barges. Specifically, the operator failed to identify the hazard of snow and ice accumulation on the barge decking. This accumulation also covered the hidden danger of slip and trip hazards. Additionally, management failed to enforce a life jacket policy.

   Corrective action: The barges at this mine have been under a Section 103(k) order since December 10, 2013, and have been the subject of an ongoing investigation. On March 21, 2014, the operator implemented a safe and effective means of having miners obtain draft readings and sampling on the barges. These new procedures incorporate a fall-arrest system to prevent a miner from falling into the river while obtaining draft readings and samples. These new safety measures on the barges include the following:

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

Activity at time of incident

Unknown

Subunit / location

DREDGE

Accident type

Drowning

Source of injury

WATER

Nature of injury

SUFFOC,SMOK INHILAT,DROWN

Body part affected

BODY SYSTEMS

Total mining experience

0 years

Experience at this mine

0 years

Experience in this job

0 years

Degree of injury

FATALITY