I call a spade a spade and that's absolute BULLSHIT plain and simple How could MSHA recomend lower fines for those companies when they tormented the owners of R&D to the point that the one committed suicide! You know you here that some of these MSHA districts are lax in there job. Why don't they send Kuzar and Spavariei to some of these districts and turn them loose. 55k a piece is an insult, they should have to pay the same fines that were imposed on R&D!

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"We don't look for any money all we look for is a little help and the only help we get is for the government to shut us down and if you go to the gas station and buy the gas you'll see why..........................you'll see why"

What happend with R and D ? and how does it relate to quecreeek diaster?

Fatalgram:
http://www.msha.gov/FATALS/2006/FAB06c42.asp

Report:
http://www.msha.gov/FATALS/2006/FTL06c42.asp


M.T.

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as far as I know they fined R&D over $800,000.00 for the accident. An independent mine with 5 or 6 guys.

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This ain't longwall... this is long hole!

Yeah that is insane.. How could a small business like that survive being fined for a single accident more than they may make in a year in profits or even revenues.. Thats a big shame. As bad as it is to hear about someone killed, accidents happen and continue to happen..

Miner Greg

And you know what's even better? There are more petitions for modification filed in District 1 than all the other districts combined! And the even better thing is most of them are granted to the mine operator! Now you might be thinking " well if they could make exceptions to some rules whats the problem" The problem is they have to fine you first! Than you coud go through all that red tape and legal B.S. and than maybe you'll get your modification! Now excuse me while I go

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"We don't look for any money all we look for is a little help and the only help we get is for the government to shut us down and if you go to the gas station and buy the gas you'll see why..........................you'll see why"

yea basically this is how it works..........

1. you have X mine car.

2. msha says you cant use X mine car, you need to use Y mine car.

3. you say, well Y mine car wont work in my mine for these 20 reasons, i need X mine car.

4. msha fines you for using X mine car instead of Y mine car.

5. you get pissed.

6. you file for modification to use X mine car, but you can only do this after you have been fined!

7. msha grants you permission to use X mine car after they review your modification plan you sent with your nice check, and youre still pissed.



you laugh, its true!

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Yeah! Theres no suggestions like "you should change this for the next inspection..we feel it's unsafe. Otherwise we may have to give you a citation."

its just instant citation.

with some things like major ventilation flaws, that may be an alright thing. but with others like "too much grease on the loader..." Holy hook!

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This ain't longwall... this is long hole!

I understand that there are major and minor issues that will get you a citation. But, from reading the report it seems that this was not a case of a couple of minor issues.

Not following a ventilation plan or a roof control plan is not a judgement call. Those plans are developed by the mine. If you write it down, you better do it.

Improper training again seems like a no-brainer. Especially on something as critical as blasting. That seems to my untrained mind a place where things are more likely to go wrong.

Again, being directly in the path of any discharge seems like a no-brainer.

Improper loading. Explosive procedures are usually written in blood, ignoring them only adds another chapter.


Dist. 1 may well have it in for the Independents. I can't argue that point. But, if that is the case, the Independents need to be extra careful not to draw fire. A smart question to ask each shift might be: " What would MSHA cite me for if they walked for an investigation?"

Granted, they will NEVER write in a report, "The mine did everything correctly, MSHA regulation were inadequate."

You know where will freese before you read those words.

The thing of it is when you talk to the guys that were actually there, even some of the MSHA guys they really blew things out of proportian. Yes mistakes were made but that was both by the miners and by MSHA. If you read the report closely your going to wonder how MSHA missed the fact that the breast was being worked so far past the last crosscut. It's because there usually to busy writing nit picky violations and not looking at what they should be. And if you read that report, and follow the chain of events that had to unfold for this to happen, and know the way things are done here, you'll realize MSHA's scenario could happen but was highly unlikely.

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"We don't look for any money all we look for is a little help and the only help we get is for the government to shut us down and if you go to the gas station and buy the gas you'll see why..........................you'll see why"

The distance to the breast is a good point.

I was trying to do an estimate in my mind,

7 to 8 foot per shot, and they were 300 plus feet beyond the last cross-cut. That didn't happen in a week or two.