Mining Incidents

North Carolina mining incidents

Every reportable accident on file with MSHA at a North Carolina mine. Operators below are ranked by recorded fatality count in this state alone.

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Fatalities recorded
12
Total incidents
2,490
Most recent fatality
2025

Top operators in North Carolina by fatality count

  1. 01Martin Marietta Aggregates1fatal
  2. 02Martin Marietta Materials, Inc.1fatal

Recent fatalities in North Carolina

Caught in, under or between running or meshing objects

Employee was found entangled in conveyor 12 tail pulley. Responding authorities pronounced the employee deceased. Incident is still under investigation.

Caught in, under or between running or meshing objects

The victim was the Kolberg Plant Operator. Employee may have been trying to perform maintenance on the tail pulley or conveyor belt, when employee became entangled in the conveyor system, causing fatal injuries. The operator is continuing to investigate the root cause(s) of this accident.

Struck against a moving object

Employee was fatally injured when the haul truck employee was operating drove off the haul road and fell into the quarry pit below

Fall to the walkway or working surface

Miners were removing a counterweight from an excavator, standing side-by-side, when the counter-weight dropped unexpectedly to the ground.The victim stumbled backwards,fell landed on the back of his head on the shop floor. He was unresponsive during CPR. The autopsy report concludes the proximate cause of death as""commotio cerebri""noting also cardiac arrest.

Struck by falling object

Victim was part of a crew that was welding hdpe pipe using a McElroy fusion machine. While attempting to position pipe in to fusion machine, using an excavator, the pipe struck the victim in the head.

Caught in, under or between two or more moving objects

An R-35 Euclid Haul truck and a rail car collided.

Struck by falling object

Employee attempted to replace starter on Hyster H50XM forklift, jacked forklift up with a 10 ton hydraulic floor jack. He did not put any blocks or shorwings under forklift to prevent it from falling. He then got under forklift to repair starter and forlift then fell off jack causing major head injuries. Employee died.

Struck by falling object

TWO EMPLOYEES WERE IN THE PROCESS OF ASSEMBLING THE FRAMEWORK OF A SCREEN TOWER. WHEN ONE SIDE FRAME WAS SET WITH A 15 TON BRIDGE CRANE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT SOME ALIGNMENT WAS NEEDED BEFORE THE SIDE FRAME COULD BE BOLTED INTO PLACE. HE ATTEMPTED TO RECONNECT THE SPREADER CHAINS TO ENBLE THE SIDE FRAME TO BE LIFTED. WHILE RAISING CRANE IT FELL ON THE INJURED IN THE BACK.

Fall from scaffolds, walkways, platforms

EMPLOYEE TOOK A ""SHORT CUT"". EMPLOYEE NEVER USED HIS FALL PROTECTION EQUIPMENT WHILE TAKING HIS ""SHORT CUT"", THE RESULT WAS THIS EMPLOYEE FALLING OFF A BEAM. THE EE FELL TO HIS DEATH 46' BELOW . EMPLOYEE HAD ALL HIS FALL PROTECTION EQUIPMENTSECURED TO HIS HARNESS AND NEVER ATTEMPTED TO SECURE THEM TO PREVENT THE FALL.

Caught in, under or between a moving and a stationary object

AN APPARENT BRAKE MALFUNCTION CAUSED THE VICTIM TO EXIT THE CAB & WAS PULLED UNDER THE REAR WHEELS OR HE PARKED IT & CRAWLED UNDER THE BED TO CHECK A PROBLEM. EITHER SENARIO CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO ROLL OVER HIS BODY CRUSHING HIM TO DEATH. THERE WAS NO APPARENT DAMAGE TO THE TRUCK.

Struck by falling object

EE WAS CUTTING A TREE, WHEN THE TRACKHOE OPERATOR INADVERTENTLY PLACED A SMALL TREE IN THE AREA IN WHICH HE WAS WORKING SERIOUSLY INJURING EE. EE WAS AIRLIFTED TO MISSION/ST JOESPH'S HOSPITAL IN ASHEVILLE, N.C.

Caught in, under or between a moving and a stationary object

THE OPERATOR WAS ATTEMPTING TO PLACE A WEDGE BETWEEN THE TWO BLOCKS THAT HAD BEEN SAWN, A ROUGH BACK FELL PINNING THE OPERATOR AGAINST THE OTHER BLOCK.

Source: US Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) accident records, kept current weekly. State assignment uses MSHA's FIPS state code on the accident record.