Mining Incidents

Oklahoma mining incidents

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

Cover Oklahoma mining? Subscribe to the Oklahoma fatality RSS feed — every new MSHA fatality at a Oklahomamine, delivered to your reader as soon as it's filed.

Fatalities recorded
15
Total incidents
3,108
Most recent fatality
2025

Top operators in Oklahoma by fatality count

  1. 01Dolese Bros Co1fatal
  2. 02Martin Marietta Materials, Inc.1fatal
  3. 03South Central Coal Company, Inc.1fatal
  4. 04Bellco Materials Inc1fatal
  5. 05Stringtown Materials LP1fatal
  6. 06Coweta Sand & Transportation Inc1fatal
  7. 07P&K Stone LLC1fatal

Recent fatalities in Oklahoma

Struck by falling object

It rained and the mining pit needed to be dewatered. EE was at the mine site alone. It was reported that EE's spouse, was in the truck on the mine site while EE went into the pit. EE moved the telehandler into the pit, parked it on the bottom of the pit parallel on the ramp. EE exited the tele. While standing outside of the tele facing east, the tele fell over onto EE, crushing EE.

Fall from scaffolds, walkways, platforms

Employee fell through opening/hole in platform that had been removed, fell about 20 feet and received head trauma. Update: The employee passed away on 9/6/24.

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

Miner was moving a rinse bucket to access a piece of metal that needed to be repaired and welded. As EE pulled the pin from the rinse bucket somehow the hydraulic cylinder gave way pinning the miner in between the bucket and a handrail. Resulting in the death of the miner.

Struck by powered moving object

Employee was fatally injured when they fell beneath the wheels of a tractor trailer. The tractor-trailer was being towed out by a bulldozer, since said truck-trailer was stuck in the sand. Victim was last seen standing 20-30 ft away, as bulldozer began to pull truck out of sand, walking toward the truck and trailer.

Drowning

Employee was operating an excavator between two small ponds when the ground beneath the excavator tracks failed and the excavator toppled into one of the ponds.

Flash burns (electric)

The investigation into the accident is on-going, but as of now, it appears as the three employees were installing ground vault indicator lights when an ach flash occurred, injuring them. The employees were transported to the hospital.

Drowning

EE was loading boat onto trailer, another EE in pickup started to pull up, wheels started spinning. Other EE went to get loader and chain, when he got back EE told him that boat had floated off trailer, EE was standing beside pickup. The other EE went to shop to get hook to try to retrieve boat, when he returned, EE's boots were by the water and EE was missing.

Caught in, under or between (Not Elsewhere Classified)

Employee was working on a Raymond Roller Mill when he entered into the roller area of the mill. The mill was energized and the rollers crushed him.

Drowning

While dumping short for a dozer to extend higher berms, the injured backed his end dump truck into a different area away from the dump area. The victim landed upside down in water at the bottom of the pit. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene by the medical examiner.

Struck by falling object

The victim had traveled inby permanent roof support in the #3 entry right crosscut #4 and a section of draw rock fell in the unsupported area fatally injuring the victim. The continuous miner was cutting into #3 right crosscut from the #4 entry when the draw rock fell out on miner and victim.

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

While cleaning material buildup from underneath field conveyor using a Bobcat loader, the employee climbed out of the vehicle to inspect a pin which had worked loose on the boom arm. After climbing back into the Bobcat, the employee bypassed the safety devices and operated the equipment standing up and became pinned between the boom crossmember and the roof of the cab.

Caught in, under or between running or meshing objects

Apparently the victim attempted to install drill steel with the mast vertical and the drill head rotating. The victim became entangled in the rotating drill steel when the steel cross threaded in the drill collar.

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

EE WAS ASSISTING IN MOVING 5 CONNECTED RAILCARS TO AN ADJACENT TRACK BY MEANS OF A WHEELL TRACTOR. THE REAR RAILCAR BECAME UNCOUPLED FROM THE TRACTOR. THE EE SIGNALED THE OPERATOR OF TRACTOR T O BACK AWAY FROM THE REAR RAILCAR TO ALLOW RECOUPLING. AFTER THE WHEEL TRACTOR BACKED AWAY, THE EE POSITIONED HIMSELF BETWEEN THE TRACTOR & RAILCAR. THE SLACK RELEASED FATALLY INJURING EE.

Drowning

TWO EES WERE ATTEMPTING TO FIX A BROKEN ANCHOR CABLE WHEN THE BOAT FLAT BOTTOM CAPSIZED AND THREW THEM INTO THE RIVER. NEITHER WERE WEAR LIFE JACKETS. OTHER WAS ABLE TO HOLD ON TO SOME TANKS T HAT WERE INT HE BOAT AND GET HIMSELF TO THE SHORE. EE WAS LAST SEEN TRYING TO SWIM TO SHORE. EE WAS FOUND AROUND 7 PM 6-27-00 ABOUT 1 1/2 MILES

Struck by powered moving object

LOADER OPERATOR OTHER INFORMED HIS FOREMAN, EE THAT HIS LOADER HAD AN OIL LEAK. EE TOLD OTHER THAT HE COULDN'T FIND THE LEAK, CLIMBED DOWN, WENT TO HIS PICKUP TRUCK FOR A FLASHLIGHT, RETURNED, & CLIMBED UNDER THE LOADER TO LOOK FOR LEAK. OTHER THINKING THEY WERE DONE, CLOSED THE COWLING, GET INTO THE CAB, AND PUT THE LOADER IN REVERSE. EE HEARING THE BACKUP ALARM, UNSUCESSFULLY TRI

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.