Tragedy in West Virginia

There are two safety questions looming in the wake of this week’s West Virginia mine tragedy. Did safety violations at the mine contribute to the accident? What will be done to make the mine safer?

There have been countless reports of the 208 safety violations at the Sago mine in 2005, up from 68 in 2004. But did they contribute to the accident in any way?

The answer may be yes. Ninety-six of the violations were considered “significant and substantial,” including the failure to dilute coal dust, which can lead to explosions.

Coal dust, which is extremely flammable and can cause explosions, is more prevalent in winter when there is less humidity that would dampen it. “Companies are required to take steps to mediate it, and if they fail they have a concentration of coal dust that poses an unacceptable risk,” says Luke Popovich, a spokesman for the National Mining Association. The violation “may well have contributed directly to the accident,” he says.

This violation could have been avoided with proper rock dusting, according to Chris Hamilton, senior vice president of the West Virginia Coal Association. “When coal dust continues to propagate throughout a mine, limestone is placed on the mine walls and floors to dilute the dust so it won’t cause an explosion,” he says. “We don’t know if the proper dusting was applied.”

The International Coal Group, which purchased the Anker West Virginia Mining Co. last year and owns the mine, has been fined over $24,000 for the 2005 violations so far -- “little more than a slap on the wrist,” according to one report. A company spokesman says the mine was safe and the Labor Department could have closed it if it was unsafe.

A federal investigation into the disaster will follow. “The Mine Safety and Health Administration will begin an in-depth investigation of the accident,” according to Acting Assistant MSHA Secretary David Dye. “An investigative team will evaluate all aspects of the accident and response, including compliance with all federal health and safety standards, and how emergency information was relayed about the trapped minors’ condition. As always, the purpose of the MSHA investigation will be to improve mine health and safety and prevent such tragedies in the future.” The West Virginia Office of Miner’s Health Safety & Training will participate in the investigation, according to the organization’s administrator Terry Farley.

The investigation has two phases, Hamilton says. After data is collected and organized, recommendations for the prevention of recurrence follow, with new policies and procedures issued. A preliminary report should be issued this spring, with new policies and procedures by the end of the year, he says.