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Downtown Clay Operation: 4 reportable incidents Metal/Non-Metal

Unimin Corp · Facility
Controlled by Covia Holdings LLC
Mitchell County, NC  ·  Abandoned
MSHA Mine ID: 3101077

MSHA record for Downtown Clay Operation (mine ID 3101077). Fatalities, non-fatal incidents grouped by year, current operator and controller, and mine context.

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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
4
Years on record
1988–1989
Latest incident
Dec 1989
Ownership history
  1. Harris Mining Company 1950 to 1986
  2. Unimin Corp 1986 to present
Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.

Downtown Clay Operation sits in Mitchell County, North Carolina, where the Census mining category is 6.2% of county employment.

Local economic context
ⓘ County figures come from the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey, 5-year pooled estimates, so the 2023 vintage covers 2019 through 2023. The Census category is 'mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction', which is broader than MSHA jurisdiction and includes oil and gas workers no mine employs. These figures describe the surrounding county, not this mine, and are not a factor in any specific incident.
Mitchell County, North Carolina · Population 14,973
6.2%
Mining share of county employment
$58,089
Median household income
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 5-year estimates.
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

4 on file

1989 · 1 incident

December 13, 1989 NC · Metal/Non-Metal maintenance man, mechanic, repair/serviceman, boilermaker, fueler, tire tech, field service tech HANDLING OF MATERIALS
Unimin Corp · Struck by... (Not Elsewhere Classified)

EMPLOYEE STATED THAT HE AND CO-WORKERS WERE INSTALLING SCREW CONVEYORS WHEN EMPLOYEE FEELS THAT HE GOT DUST OR RUST METAL INTO HIS EYE.EMPLOYEE SAID HE WASHED HIS EYE OUT WITH ISOTONE BUT IT C ONTINUED TO BOTH HIM.HE WENT TO THE ER WHERE HIS EYE WAS CLEANED OUT.FOREIGN MATERIAL IN LEFT EYE.CONVEYORS WERE BEING INSTALLED UNDER DUST COLLECTOR.

1988 · 3 incidents

June 16, 1988 NC · Metal/Non-Metal belt foreman, maintenance foreman, maintenance supervisor HANDTOOLS (NONPOWERED)
Unimin Corp · Struck by... (Not Elsewhere Classified)

EMPLOYEE WAS ASSISTING THE MAINTENANCE CREW IN INSTALLING A NEW CONVEYOR TROUGH BY RAISING AND LOWERING A CHAIN FALL COME-A-LONG. HE PUSHED THE HANDLE OF THE COME-A-LONG TO ONE SIDE TO OBSERV E THE WORK AND APPARENTLY ON OF THE MAINTENANCE EMPLOYEES MOVED THE TROUGH ENOUGH TO CAUSE THE HANDLE TO COME AROUND AND HIT THE EMPLOYEE ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF MOUTH.

June 7, 1988 NC · Metal/Non-Metal maintenance man, mechanic, repair/serviceman, boilermaker, fueler, tire tech, field service tech MACHINERY
Unimin Corp · Flash burns (welding)

I.NAME & I.NAME HAD BEEN WORKING DOWN IN BETWEEN TWO LARGE WOODEN CLAY STORAGE T ANKS INSTALLING HANDRAILS & CATWALKS SINCE START OF THEIR SHIFT AT 700AM AREA IS SOMEWHAT CONFINED & I.NAME DID NOT REALIZE THAT ARC FROM WELDER WAS REFLECTINGOFF OF SURROUNDING STRUCTURES ENOUGH TO BOTHER HIS EYES

January 15, 1988 NC · Metal/Non-Metal greaser, grease man, oiler, lube man, dragline oiler SLIP OR FALL OF PERSON
Unimin Corp · Fall from scaffolds, walkways, platforms

EMPLOYEE WAS WO9KING OFF A PLATFORM 2 X 6 X 8 WOODEN PLANK. HE WAS ATTEMPTING TO POKE PARTICIALLY FROZEN MICA FROM FEED BIN TO FEED SCREW. EMPLOYEE LOST FOOTING AND FELL APPROX. 42 INCH TO A C ONCRETE FLOOR. 3