Latest Mining Headlines

All the headlines from our Mining Topic Page, ordered by recency.

West Virginia Worker Identified in Fatal Accident at Mine

Jul 30 2009 // A truck operator killed at a West Virginia surface mine on Tuesday has been identified.State mine agency spokeswoman Jama Jarrett said Wednesday that 28-year-old Mark Gray of Belle died Tuesday when his truck backed into a...

Coal Miner Killed by Falling Rock in Western Pennsylvania

Jun 26 2009 // A coal miner is dead after being hit by falling rock inside a mine in southwestern Pennsylvania.Consol Energy officials say 54-year-old Robert Maust of Uniontown died early Wednesday morning after being struck by falling...

West Virginia Fines Trucking Firm for Fatal Mining Accident

May 21 2009 // The state of West Virginia has fined a trucking company $50,000 for violations investigators say contributed to a fatal coal mining accident in February, a spokeswoman for the Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and...

Massey Energy Fined $2.5 Million for Fatal West Virginia Mine Fire

Apr 17 2009 // A Massey Energy subsidiary was fined $2.5 million fine this week after a federal judge accepted the company’s guilty plea to 10 criminal charges for a fire that killed two West Virginia coal miners.U.S. District...

U.S. Mining Safety Officials Look to Reduce Number of Contested Cases

Mar 31 2009 // The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has announced that settlement conferences held between mine operators and MSHA personnel to resolve enforcement disputes will be deferred...

Spring Brings Increased Wyoming Mining, Safety Concerns

Mar 23 2009 // The arrival of spring brings increased activity at Wyoming mines and quarries, and with it, a greater risk of workplace accidents, safety officials say.Seasonal workers becoming reacquainted with their jobs and the use of...

Workers Charge Kentucky Mine Safety Law ‘Under Attack’

Mar 6 2009 // Critics are complaining that three measures pending in the Kentucky legislature could undo key provisions of the state’s mine safety law.One would sharply reduce inspections performed by the Kentucky Office of Mine...

Kentucky Lawmaker’s Mine Cited For Safety Violation

Mar 4 2009 // A Kentucky lawmaker pushing to reduce the number of medics required at small mines owns a mine that was cited last year for not having the personnel on duty.The Lexington Herald-Leader reported that state inspectors last...

Willis Analyzes Mining Industry ‘Insurance Crunch’

Mar 3 2009 // A new report from Willis’ London office concludes that the “global mining industry is caught in a ‘classic insurance market crunch’ as mining companies, faced with declining commodity prices and...

China’s Dangerous Mines: 74 Die, 114 Injured in Latest Accident

Feb 23 2009 // A gas explosion ripped through a coal mine in northern China on Sunday, killing at least 74 miners and trapping dozens, state media said. It was the country’s deadliest coal mine accident in more than a...

Revett Minerals Sued for Negligence at Troy Mine

Feb 23 2009 // The widow of a man killed during a cave-in at Revett Minerals’ copper and silver mine in Montana has filed a lawsuit against the company, seeking $18 million in compensatory and punitive damages.Tammy Ivins served...

Judge Orders Small Mine Rescue Training

Feb 22 2009 // A judge has ordered the federal agency that regulates coal mining to strengthen rules designed to make the nation’s 38,000 underground coal miners safer by creating better-trained rescue teams.U.S. Circuit Court of...

Judge Orders Tougher Mine Safety Rules to Improve Rescue Teams

Feb 12 2009 // A judge has ordered the federal agency that regulates coal mining to strengthen rules designed to make the nation’s 38,000 underground coal miners safer by creating better-trained rescue teams.U.S. Circuit Court of...

Kentucky Miner’s Widow Seeks $37 Million in Damages

Feb 2 2009 // The widow of an eastern Kentucky coal miner who died on the job last year has sued one of the nation’s largest coal companies for more than $37 million in damages.The Lexington Herald-Leader reports that an attorney...

2 More West Virginia Families Reach Sago Mine Settlements

Jan 28 2009 // Court records show that families of two more workers who died in the Sago Mine disaster have settled their lawsuits with the mine’s operator.Details of the settlement with International Coal Group were not made...

Coal Industry Group Launches Mine Safety Effort

Jan 14 2009 // The National Mining Association is launching a new campaign it hopes will help keep underground coal miners safe.The “Stay Away, Stay Alive” initiative is aimed at reducing accidents and deaths related to...

Family of Utah Mine Collapse Victim Awarded Money

Jan 6 2009 // A coal company has been ordered to pay full benefits to the family of one of the six miners killed in the 2007 collapse of the Crandall Canyon mine.An administrative judge for the Utah Labor Commission ordered Genwal...

Rates Fall for Mine Subsidence Insurance in Pennsylvania

Dec 31 2008 // Staring tomorrow, homeowners and commercial building owners in Pennsylvania can take advantage of substantially lower rates for mine subsidence insurance, making it more affordable to protect against catastrophic damage...

Inspector Shortage Hampers West Virginia Coal Mine Safety Effort

Dec 30 2008 // An inability to retain inspectors is hurting West Virginia’s efforts to make the inherently dangerous business of coal mining safer.Faced with a turnover rate topping 20 percent, the state is scrambling — for...

U.S. Safety Agency Wants Coal Mines to Develop Communications Plan

Dec 22 2008 // America’s 600 underground coal mines would have to spend an estimated $278 million installing sophisticated electronic communications and tracking equipment under a new federal proposal requiring operators to file...