MSHA and Oklahoma Mine Reach Settlement in Fatal Mine Accident
The employee was killed while inside a roller mill that was not de-energized.
A settlement between The U.S. Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration and a mine in Oklahoma has been reached regarding the 2010 death of a maintenance manager. The St. Clair Mine in Marble City received 39 citations subsequent to the fatal accident.
U.S. Lime Co. will pay $211,002 in the wake of the accident. The company accepted responsibility for failing to require that equipment be de-energized before any mechanical work is performed. That violation alone carried the weight of a $150,600 fine.
The maintenance manager was fatally injured inside a roller mill that was not de-energized.
"As I've often stated, mine fatalities are preventable," said Joseph A. Main, assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health, in a statement on the DOL website. "This accident occurred because mine management failed to ensure that safe work procedures were being followed while performing maintenance and mechanical work in the roller mill."