Coal Tattoo

Two more coal miners die on the job

Mine Explosion

Bad news in this morning from the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration, which reports that one coal miner was killed yesterday in Alabama and another early this morning in Utah.

The Alabama death occurred at the Manchester Mine, operated by Black Warrior Minerals in Walker County. Here’s what MSHA has released so far:

Yesterday afternoon, while operating a bulldozer at the Manchester Mine in Alabama, the dozer operator was killed when his dozer went off a highwall. Initial reports are the dozer was on a bench preparing a drill site.

Updated: MSHA has posted a preliminary report on this fatality here.  It identifies the miner who died as 53-year-old Barry M. Duncan.

The Utah death occurred at Murray Energy’s West Ridge Mine in Carbon County. Here’s what I have in from MSHA:

At approximately 1:39 a.m. local time today, a miner was killed on the 23rd Longwall at the West Ridge mine in Utah.  Reportedly, the victim was found inside the cab of his mobile diesel can-setter and apparently had received crushing injuries.  There were no witnesses.

No MSHA preliminary report posted on this one yet, but Murray Energy identified the miner who died as Alejandro Ramirez, age 46, of Price, Utah, and here’s the MSHA preliminary report.