Feds cite Massey

MSHA has cited The Moustachioed One's company, Massey Energy, for safety violations that investigators say contributed to the death of a miner.

The accident occurred in Kanawha County when a miner fell 39 feet when a conveyor belt he was working on started up without warning.

From AP via Time Magazine:

The MSHA noted a series of problems at the mine in the report. Among other things, the agency cited Massey's Mammoth Coal Co. because the belt had inadequate startup alarms, including one that wasn't working, according to the report.

Inspectors also cited the mine after finding that the power to the belt hadn't been turned off before Neal started work and that the circuit breaker had a broken handle, making it inoperable.

Nader releases mine safety study

From Ralph Nader's Center for Responsible Law:

Nader said:

I have been involved in coal mine health and safety issues since before and during the passage of the landmark Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety

Act of 1969. All the data demonstrate that introduction of governmental
health and safety regulations has prevented injuries, disease, and death.
But as Christopher Shaw's report demonstrates, coal operators have
repeatedly acted to undermine the effectiveness of health and safety
measures.

The tragic disasters that have recently befallen miners serve to
highlight how the Bush Administration's misplaced priorities are
detrimental to the public interest. The quality of the Mine Safety and
Health Administration's efforts, while Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao
has been at the helm of the Department of Labor, has been poor. The Mine
Safety and Health Administration needs to focus on upgrading and rigorous
enforcement of all standards designed to protect miners.

The full report is available as a pdf here.

Photo: July 27, 1996 / The Associated Press.