Latest Mining Headlines

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

Feds Hire More than 300 New Coal Mine Safety Inspectors

Jul 7 2008 // The federal agency responsible for mine safety has hired more than 300 inspectors over the past two years to scour underground coal operations for unsafe working conditions. The Mine Safety and Health Administration is...

Mine Owners, Unions Compromise on Long-Sought Pennsylvania Safety Bill

Jul 2 2008 // Legislation to improve safety in Pennsylvania’s approximately 200 bituminous coal mines was poised to become law after a marathon negotiation yielded a compromise bill endorsed Monday by both the coal companies and...

Feds Warn 16 Mining Companies over Safety Issues

Jun 23 2008 // Federal Mine Safety and Health Administration officials said they told 16 U.S. mining companies they have patterns of violating health and safety rules and warned them to clean up their acts or face heightened...

Feds Hire More than 300 New Coal Mine Inspectors

Jun 18 2008 // The federal agency responsible for mine safety has hired more than 300 inspectors over the past two years to scour the nation’s underground coal operations for unsafe working conditions.The Mine Safety and Health...

Coal Miner Killed in Pennsylvania Accident

Jun 18 2008 // A coal miner was killed Monday in an accident at an eastern Pennsylvania anthracite mine.The 40-year-old man, who was not immediately identified, became trapped by falling coal or rocks about three-fourths of a mile into...

Mine safety Officials Issue Warning to East Kentucky Mine for Violations

Jun 16 2008 // The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration issued a warning to a mine in eastern Kentucky for safety violations.The Louisville Courier-Journal reports that the agency issued the warning on June 12 to Stillhouse Mine...

Feds to Require Airtight Refuge Chambers in All Coal Mines

Jun 16 2008 // The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration is taking a stab at requiring airtight emergency refuges in the nation’s 624 underground coal mines.Mine operators can either store building materials underground,...

Investigators Test Locomotive Involved in West Virginia Mine Fatality

Jun 11 2008 // Government experts are examining a locomotive involved in a fatal accident at a West Virginia coal mine June 5.Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and Training spokeswoman Jama Jarrett says the state is testing the...

Kentucky Governor Appoints Members to State Mining Board

Jun 6 2008 // Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear reappointed Edgar F. Oldham Jr. and James M. Vicini to serve as a members of the Kentucky Mining Board.Oldham is an international representative for the United Mine Workers of America. He...

Univeristy of Idaho Officials Want to Start Mine Safety Instruction

Jun 4 2008 // The University of Idaho, seeing a resurgence of mining activity in northern Idaho due to soaring metal prices, is seeking federal funding to bring back mining education programs, a school official said.“The metals...

West Virginia Mining Accident Raises 2008 Death toll to 3

Jun 2 2008 // An 18-year-old International Coal Group employee died in West Virginia’s third fatal coal mining accident of the year.State Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and Training spokeswoman Jama Jarrett identified the...

Passage of Time Hampers Investigation of West Virginia Mining Accident

May 16 2008 // A West Virginia official says the passage of time makes it impossible to determine what caused a fatal 2005 coal truck crash. Administrator Terry Farley said May 14 the Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and Training...

Mine Officials Say Violations Contributed to West Virginia Death

May 14 2008 // Federal investigators issued two citations for safety violations they say contributed to the death of a West Virginia coal miner last year. A federal Mine Safety and Health Administration report released May 12 says Long...

Coal Mining Company Cited for Violations in West Virginia Mine Death

May 9 2008 // Federal investigators cited coal operator Massey Energy Co. for safety violations that contributed to the death of a West Virginia miner last year, according to a federal report released May 7.The U.S. Mine Safety and...

Update: West Virginia Cancels Mine Seal Meeting

May 1 2008 // The state Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety has put off plans to revisit West Virginia’s regulations for sealing abandoned sections of coal mines. State law requires the board to review West Virginia’s...

West Virginia to Revisit Mine Seal Rules

Apr 30 2008 // The state board of Coal Mine Health and Safety plans to revisit West Virginia’s regulations for sealing abandoned sections of coal mines. State law requires the board to review West Virginia’s regulations...

Virginia Mine Where Worker Died Had 48 Safety Violations

Apr 25 2008 // The owner of a southwest Virginia coal mine where a worked was killed Tuesday had been cited 48 times for safety violations since 2005, according to state documents.The violations at the Wise County mine included seven for...

West Virginia Mining Co. Blames Losses on Structural Issues, Labor Shortage

Apr 25 2008 // West Virginia-based International Coal Group says its first-quarter loss widened nearly 42 percent due to lagging production and other problems. ICG said Wednesday it lost $11.5 million, or 8 cents per share, in the first...

Kentucky Gov. Blocking Mine Safety Appointment of Ex-Fletcher Aide

Apr 23 2008 // Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear’s administration is blocking the appointment of his predecessor’s top aide to Kentucky’s Mine Safety Review Commission.Stan Cave, who was former Gov. Ernie Fletcher’s...

Safety Award at West Virginia Mine Stirs Critics

Apr 16 2008 // The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration plans to give a safety award to a Massey Energy Co. underground mine in West Virginia where two men were killed in a January 2006 fire.Massey announced the award for its...