MSHA launches safety initiative for isolated miners

Five miners died in accidents during the first three months of the year that occurred when they were working alone on mine property, reports the Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA).

In order to raise awareness of this, MSHA launched an initiative to focus on hazards that miners may encounter when they’re working in areas away from others.

According to MSHA, the initiative calls on inspectors and training specialists to engage miners and mine operators in “walk and talks” during regular inspection visits. MSHA encourages operators to account for all workers at all times and to provide them with best practices.

Some of the best practices emphasized by MSHA include thinking about the task at hand and if the miner has the adequate training to perform the job safely; informing a responsible person where a miner will be working and traveling in the mine; identifying hazards before beginning a task; avoiding shortcuts; and using customary check-in and check-out procedures.

“Mine operators should have procedures in place so they can account for the whereabouts of every miner, at the beginning of the shift, while they are working and at the end of the shift,” says Patricia Silvey, deputy assistant secretary of labor for operations. “They should assess whether a particular task can be safely completed by a miner working alone, and always follow established communication practices.”