Specialty Minerals IncMining Incidents in 2007

Worker was removing a 3/8"" pipe fitting from a solenoid valve when he felt a pop in his shoulder.

Employee slipped on slush covered surface and fell striking his knee on the ground.

Employee was pushing electrical motors onto a pallet and when he was adjusting one of the motors on the pallet he felt a slight pain in his back. He immediately stopped moving the motors. He then picked up some bolts off the floor and had severe pain in his lower back. (Reportable due to RWDs, which started on 6/11/07.)

Employee was handing parts up over his head when he felt a rib strain in his right ribcage.

Employee was placing an empty propane cylinder into a cage used to transport the cylinders for refill. He pinched the 5th finger on his left hand between steel bracket in the cage and the propane cylinder. X-rays showed a fracture to the finger and he was placed on restricted duty.

Employee was passing a cover for the pre-grind dust system to another employee and felt pain in his lower back radiating down the right side. He continued to work full-duty until 9/20/07 when he received medical attention and was placed on restricted work.

Employee was shoveling/discharging furnace when an unexpected sudden discharge of heated dust hit his neck and upper chest area. Furnace 10 was being used to dry spent calcium/aluminate briquettes for a trial at the time and was almost empty.

Employee was assisting in changing out the cooling fan drive motor. To get the motor up to the cooling tower a pipe was put through the motor's lifting eyelet. One employee on each side of the 4 foot pipe lifted and started carrying the motor. When they went up an incline the motor slipped down the pipe contacting the employee's finger.

Employee was climbing down ladder of tanker truck trailer and at bottom/ground stepped on uneven ground and twisted ankle.

Employee was greasing secondary crusher and dryer(SCD) L-150 D Loader and slipped on snow/ice and landed on right shoulder. Employee decided not to go to see a doctor until 2/17/2007. Reportable due to restricted work duty days starting 2/17/2007.

Employee was digging a stripping shot. The bucket hit a large boulder that was covered up smaller stones. This caused the loader to come to a complete stop and the employee's upper body went forward then backward causing a whiplash type injury to his neck. Seatbelt was worn. He continued to work full duty. He was then seen by a doctor on 1/22/07 and placed on restricted duty.

Worker was trying to operate a railroad switch to divert a railcar to a scales for weighing. The switch was hard to operate. Worker tried to kick the switch into place when he pulled ligaments in his knee.

Employee was cleaning a photocell on our automated packaging center, when a push arm overextended and caught his finger.

Employee was positioning a drill steel onto a flatbed truck. The steel rolled and pinched his finger.

A hydraulic chain wrench was being used to loosen the hammer on an overburden drill. The threaded portion of the end of the chain wrench broke, swung around, and struck the employee in left shin, causing a small puncture wound.

While arc welding inside the dryer at the secondary and crusher dryer, EE's eyes were exposed to flashes reflecting off the very shiny stainless steel inside dryer. Flashes came in from back of welding helmt. Reportable due to prescriptiong antibiotics to prevent infection.

EE was working in the calcium/furnace building loading calcium crowns into the crown chipper chute & pinched his left index finger between the crown & metal chute. Reportable due to avulsion injury - ripped a number of layers of skin. He was released back to restricted work duty but was already scheduled for vacation from 2/10 thru 2/18. On 2/19 he was released back to full duty.

Employee was found unconscious on a landing at the bottom of a set of stairs in the Screen Plant building. CPR was performed until EMS arrived. Employee was transported by ambulance to the hospital where he was later pronouced dead.