Pa. coal mine owner, cited after fatal explosion, commits suicide
The Associated Press
ALLENTOWN, Pa. - A coal mine operator who was fighting record fines issued to his business after a fatal accident committed suicide at one of his mines.
David S. Himmelberger, owner of the R&D Coal Co. in Schuylkill County, died of a gunshot wound early Monday, county Coroner David Dutcavich said.
Himmelberger, who was known as Stu, was under stress from the investigation and litigation stemming from a deadly explosion at the company's Buck Mountain Slope Mine in Tremont, his lawyer, Adele Abrams, said Tuesday.
R&D was the first mining company cited for flagrant violations under new federal rules forged in 2006. Congress boosted mine-safety fines after a series of miner deaths, including those of 12 men at West Virginia's Sago mine.
The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration fined the company $874,500 following the October 2006 death of miner Dale Reightler, 43, of Donaldson.
"The record penalties that they proposed against a small company were just unconscionable," Abrams said. "They are not allowed to fine somebody out of business."
The company will continue to fight the fines in court, Abrams said.
Himmelberger's wife, Dawn, told The Morning Call of Allentown that "they are pushing these miners to the brink."
Himmelberger was part of a small community of anthracite miners still working in Pennsylvania. Anthracite, a type of hard, relatively clean-burning coal, once heated millions of homes but now represents a tiny sliver of the U.S. coal industry.
In March, MSHA released a report on Reightler's death saying the Buck Mountain Slope Mine had inadequate ventilation, unsafe blasting practices and improper pre-shift safety checks.
The state Department of Environmental Protection forced the company to close in January and revoked its mining permit for disregarding the "safety and well-being of the miners and their families."
The DEP said the company's alleged cover-up of a similar 2004 blast might have contributed to Reightler's death.
Himmelberger died at R&D's Orchard coal mine, leaving a wife and three children, Abrams said.
,,,
http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/103-10162007-1424499.html
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
One killed in Pennsylvania coal mine accident
One killed in Pennsylvania coal mine accident
POSTED: 2:26 p.m. EDT,
October 23, 2006
From Zak Sos
CNN) -- A Pennsylvania coal mine accident killed at least one worker Monday morning, the state Department of Environmental Protection said.
The investigation at the Buck Mountain Anthracite Mine, in rural Schuylkill Haven, was taken over by the Mine Safety and Health Administration, the State Police said.
"We have one confirmed fatality," Kurt Knaus, a spokesman for the state Department of Environmental Protection, told The Associated Press. "I believe it is a recovery and not a rescue operation."
The mine -- in eastern Pennsylvania 70 miles northwest of Philadelphia -- is operated by R&D Coal Co. Calls to the company were not immediately returned.
According to records on the MSHA's Web site, an explosion occurred at the same mine in 2004 injuring 4 workers.
Eastern Pennsylvania has the nation's only deposits of anthracite, a type of hard, relatively clean-burning coal that once heated millions of homes but now represents a tiny sliver of the U.S. coal industry, according to the AP.
The mines still operating are typically small with only a few miners, the AP said.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/10/23/mine.explosion/index.html
POSTED: 2:26 p.m. EDT,
October 23, 2006
From Zak Sos
CNN) -- A Pennsylvania coal mine accident killed at least one worker Monday morning, the state Department of Environmental Protection said.
The investigation at the Buck Mountain Anthracite Mine, in rural Schuylkill Haven, was taken over by the Mine Safety and Health Administration, the State Police said.
"We have one confirmed fatality," Kurt Knaus, a spokesman for the state Department of Environmental Protection, told The Associated Press. "I believe it is a recovery and not a rescue operation."
The mine -- in eastern Pennsylvania 70 miles northwest of Philadelphia -- is operated by R&D Coal Co. Calls to the company were not immediately returned.
According to records on the MSHA's Web site, an explosion occurred at the same mine in 2004 injuring 4 workers.
Eastern Pennsylvania has the nation's only deposits of anthracite, a type of hard, relatively clean-burning coal that once heated millions of homes but now represents a tiny sliver of the U.S. coal industry, according to the AP.
The mines still operating are typically small with only a few miners, the AP said.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/10/23/mine.explosion/index.html
Coal mine owner commits suicide
Coal mine owner commits suicide
Allentown Morning Call - Allentown,PA, USA
By Chris Parker
October 16, 2007
The owner of a Schuylkill County coal mine where a miner died in a blast last year committed suicide at the business early Monday.
David S. Himmelberger of Tremont died of a gunshot wound, county Coroner David Dutcavich said.
Himmelberger was president and owner of the R&D Coal Mine in the township, where a methane blast on Oct. 23, 2006, killed Dale Reightler, 43, of Donaldson, Frailey Township, Schuylkill County.
The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration subsequently fined the company $874,500 for ''flagrant'' safety violations at the mine.
''Mr. Himmelberger committed an act of self-harm this morning and was successful at taking his own life,'' Dutcavich said. ''He apparently left home very early this morning, as was his habit, and didn't say anything to anybody.
Dutcavich said Himmelberger' s co-workers said he had been out of sorts.
Reached by phone, Himmelberger' s wife, Dawn, said she was at a loss for words, but added, ''They are pushing these miners to the brink.''
Himmelberger' s attorney, Adele Abrams, said he was distressed by the prolonged case and potential fines that would have sent him into bankruptcy, according to the Mine Safety and Health News newsletter.
Cindy Rothermel, president of the Independent Miners and Associates, an anthracite mine industry advocacy group based in Tremont, said, ''We have no words -- everybody is just totally astounded.''
R&D was the first mining company cited for flagrant violations under new federal rules forged in 2006. The rules allow much higher financial penalties, and the company could have been fined about $1.33 million for the violations investigators found.
In a report released March 26, MSHA blamed the blast on inadequate ventilation, poor blasting practice -- including leaving an uncovered box of explosives 30 feet from the blast area -- having unqualified miners doing the blasting, firing the blast before miners could move to a safe area and improper preshift examinations of the work area at the company's Buck Mountain Slope Mine in Tremont Township.
The report said mine operators waited more than an hour after the explosion to call 911, and almost 90 minutes to notify federal mining officials. Though the report also said it was miner Reightler who left the explosives at the blast site, was to have checked for methane gas, and who gave the signal for the blast and who disconnected an air hose from pneumatic drilling equipment for ventilation, it was still R&D's responsibility to ensure mining regulations were followed.
The report found seven ''root causes'' for the blast that, if eliminated, would have prevented or mitigated it. Among them were that the miners who conducted the blasting activities were not qualified to handle, load or fire explosives. The report also said the shots were fired before miners were in safe areas, and that Reightler was ''in a straight line with the force of the blast when the shot was fired, causing fatal injuries.'' In addition, it said mine operators didn't ensure there was enough circulating air current to dilute or carry away ''explosive noxious and harmful gases.'' The report also says the mine used long entries with temporary ventilation even though MSHA officials told Himmelberger two weeks before the blast that it was in violation of federal mine regulations.
The state Department of Environmental Protection forced the company to close in January and revoked its mining permit for disregarding the ''safety and well-being of the miners and their families.'' The DEP said the company misled the agency on details of a 2004 blast that injured four miners, saying it was an air line explosion when in fact it was a methane explosion similar to the October 2006 blast.
http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-a1_1coaldeath.6093272oct16,0,4127666.story
Allentown Morning Call - Allentown,PA, USA
By Chris Parker
October 16, 2007
The owner of a Schuylkill County coal mine where a miner died in a blast last year committed suicide at the business early Monday.
David S. Himmelberger of Tremont died of a gunshot wound, county Coroner David Dutcavich said.
Himmelberger was president and owner of the R&D Coal Mine in the township, where a methane blast on Oct. 23, 2006, killed Dale Reightler, 43, of Donaldson, Frailey Township, Schuylkill County.
The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration subsequently fined the company $874,500 for ''flagrant'' safety violations at the mine.
''Mr. Himmelberger committed an act of self-harm this morning and was successful at taking his own life,'' Dutcavich said. ''He apparently left home very early this morning, as was his habit, and didn't say anything to anybody.
Dutcavich said Himmelberger' s co-workers said he had been out of sorts.
Reached by phone, Himmelberger' s wife, Dawn, said she was at a loss for words, but added, ''They are pushing these miners to the brink.''
Himmelberger' s attorney, Adele Abrams, said he was distressed by the prolonged case and potential fines that would have sent him into bankruptcy, according to the Mine Safety and Health News newsletter.
Cindy Rothermel, president of the Independent Miners and Associates, an anthracite mine industry advocacy group based in Tremont, said, ''We have no words -- everybody is just totally astounded.''
R&D was the first mining company cited for flagrant violations under new federal rules forged in 2006. The rules allow much higher financial penalties, and the company could have been fined about $1.33 million for the violations investigators found.
In a report released March 26, MSHA blamed the blast on inadequate ventilation, poor blasting practice -- including leaving an uncovered box of explosives 30 feet from the blast area -- having unqualified miners doing the blasting, firing the blast before miners could move to a safe area and improper preshift examinations of the work area at the company's Buck Mountain Slope Mine in Tremont Township.
The report said mine operators waited more than an hour after the explosion to call 911, and almost 90 minutes to notify federal mining officials. Though the report also said it was miner Reightler who left the explosives at the blast site, was to have checked for methane gas, and who gave the signal for the blast and who disconnected an air hose from pneumatic drilling equipment for ventilation, it was still R&D's responsibility to ensure mining regulations were followed.
The report found seven ''root causes'' for the blast that, if eliminated, would have prevented or mitigated it. Among them were that the miners who conducted the blasting activities were not qualified to handle, load or fire explosives. The report also said the shots were fired before miners were in safe areas, and that Reightler was ''in a straight line with the force of the blast when the shot was fired, causing fatal injuries.'' In addition, it said mine operators didn't ensure there was enough circulating air current to dilute or carry away ''explosive noxious and harmful gases.'' The report also says the mine used long entries with temporary ventilation even though MSHA officials told Himmelberger two weeks before the blast that it was in violation of federal mine regulations.
The state Department of Environmental Protection forced the company to close in January and revoked its mining permit for disregarding the ''safety and well-being of the miners and their families.'' The DEP said the company misled the agency on details of a 2004 blast that injured four miners, saying it was an air line explosion when in fact it was a methane explosion similar to the October 2006 blast.
http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-a1_1coaldeath.6093272oct16,0,4127666.story
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Yellowknife court hears arguments about blame in bomb blast that killed nine
Yellowknife court hears arguments about blame in bomb blast that killed nine
The Canadian Press
October 15, 2007
YELLOWKNIFE - The blame for one of Canada's worst mass murders is being debated in a Yellowknife courtroom today.
Fifteen years after nine miners were killed by a deliberately set underground bomb at Yellowknife's Giant Mine, lawyers for groups including the Canadian Auto Workers union and the territorial government are appealing a ruling that found them partly responsible.
The groups were ordered to pay ten million dollars to the families of the victims.
Lawyer Lyle Kanee told the appeal court that blaming the union for the actions of one its members would be like blaming a hockey coach for the actions of an out-of-control goon, or blaming parents for the crimes of their children.
He said the original 2004 decision goes against the notion of individuals taking responsibility for their actions.
Other lawyers argued that the trial judge failed to point to any specific action that caused Roger Warren, who is serving a life sentence for second-degree murder, to set the bomb.
The Canadian Press
October 15, 2007
YELLOWKNIFE - The blame for one of Canada's worst mass murders is being debated in a Yellowknife courtroom today.
Fifteen years after nine miners were killed by a deliberately set underground bomb at Yellowknife's Giant Mine, lawyers for groups including the Canadian Auto Workers union and the territorial government are appealing a ruling that found them partly responsible.
The groups were ordered to pay ten million dollars to the families of the victims.
Lawyer Lyle Kanee told the appeal court that blaming the union for the actions of one its members would be like blaming a hockey coach for the actions of an out-of-control goon, or blaming parents for the crimes of their children.
He said the original 2004 decision goes against the notion of individuals taking responsibility for their actions.
Other lawyers argued that the trial judge failed to point to any specific action that caused Roger Warren, who is serving a life sentence for second-degree murder, to set the bomb.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Rescue workers learn the drill
Rescue workers learn the drill
By Jessie Halladay
Louisville,KY,USA
October 14, 2007
As dusk began to fall, two men hobbled from the rubble of the old Philip Morris plant at 18th Street and Broadway calling for help. In front of them, two men lay bleeding on the ground, writhing in pain.
Cautiously, firefighters from Louisville Fire & Rescue began to approach as victims yelled at them to hurry up.
As real as it seemed, with patients screaming in pain and begging for help, it was only a drill designed to prepare for mass-casualty emergencies.
“It’s a phenomenal opportunity,” said Maj. Tony Cipolla, a leader with the Metro Search and Rescue task force. “This is what all along we’ve been building to.”
The owners of the property, The Mardrian Group, allowed the simulation to take place there as they are preparing the site for demolition. Eventually, the land will be used to develop housing and retail space.
For more than three years, the search-rescue team has been in development — from writing a federal grant to pay for the equipment and training to actually training firefighters and EMS for the team.
Tonight’s exercise — dubbed Operation Jericho — was the first on a large scale, incorporating a variety of skills including structural collapse rescue, debris removal, high-angle rescue and confined-space rescue. The simulation was expected to continue until about 7 tomorrow morning.
Simultaneously, medical personnel were able to practice handling large numbers of casualties and varying degrees of injury. Medical teams deployed a field hospital tent recently acquired by the city to handle patients that require treatment at a site.
The drill offered a chance for EMS and hospital employees to test their skills under lifelike conditions, said Dr. Neal Richmond, director of EMS, who was at the scene.
“It changes the whole tenor of being in a classroom,” Richmond said. “It immediately creates that perception of ‘pretty real.’ And it makes people really test their skills.”
Over the past year and a half, nearly 150 people have been trained in special tactics to qualify them for the search-rescue team, Cipolla said. About 60 of them participated in last night’s drill.
The team is designed to respond to emergencies, whether they be construction accidents or terrorist attacks, both in Louisville and around the state and the region.
In the drill, which took more than 140 people to carry out, emergency responders were told that there had been a gas explosion at a construction site that caused a collapse. In all, there would be about 30 “sick” people to treat.
In addition, nine mannequins were placed inside the building to simulate people trapped by debris.
The exercise cost about $60,000 in federal grant money.
By Jessie Halladay
Louisville,KY,USA
October 14, 2007
As dusk began to fall, two men hobbled from the rubble of the old Philip Morris plant at 18th Street and Broadway calling for help. In front of them, two men lay bleeding on the ground, writhing in pain.
Cautiously, firefighters from Louisville Fire & Rescue began to approach as victims yelled at them to hurry up.
As real as it seemed, with patients screaming in pain and begging for help, it was only a drill designed to prepare for mass-casualty emergencies.
“It’s a phenomenal opportunity,” said Maj. Tony Cipolla, a leader with the Metro Search and Rescue task force. “This is what all along we’ve been building to.”
The owners of the property, The Mardrian Group, allowed the simulation to take place there as they are preparing the site for demolition. Eventually, the land will be used to develop housing and retail space.
For more than three years, the search-rescue team has been in development — from writing a federal grant to pay for the equipment and training to actually training firefighters and EMS for the team.
Tonight’s exercise — dubbed Operation Jericho — was the first on a large scale, incorporating a variety of skills including structural collapse rescue, debris removal, high-angle rescue and confined-space rescue. The simulation was expected to continue until about 7 tomorrow morning.
Simultaneously, medical personnel were able to practice handling large numbers of casualties and varying degrees of injury. Medical teams deployed a field hospital tent recently acquired by the city to handle patients that require treatment at a site.
The drill offered a chance for EMS and hospital employees to test their skills under lifelike conditions, said Dr. Neal Richmond, director of EMS, who was at the scene.
“It changes the whole tenor of being in a classroom,” Richmond said. “It immediately creates that perception of ‘pretty real.’ And it makes people really test their skills.”
Over the past year and a half, nearly 150 people have been trained in special tactics to qualify them for the search-rescue team, Cipolla said. About 60 of them participated in last night’s drill.
The team is designed to respond to emergencies, whether they be construction accidents or terrorist attacks, both in Louisville and around the state and the region.
In the drill, which took more than 140 people to carry out, emergency responders were told that there had been a gas explosion at a construction site that caused a collapse. In all, there would be about 30 “sick” people to treat.
In addition, nine mannequins were placed inside the building to simulate people trapped by debris.
The exercise cost about $60,000 in federal grant money.
E.China gas eruption kills one, traps 18 miners
E.China gas eruption kills one, traps 18 miners
China Daily - China
October 14, 2007
NANCHANG -- A sudden coal and gas eruption in East China's Jianxin Province on Saturday night has left one miner dead, two injured and 18 others trapped, said a spokesman with the provincial work safety watchdog on Sunday.
The accident occurred at 11:45 pm Saturday in Shangtang Township, Fengcheng City when 283 miners were working underground.
Twenty-one of them, 14 gas drainage workers and seven electricians, were at the tunneling working surface when the outburst took place. One was confirmed dead and two others were injured.
As of 8:00 am on Sunday, 262 people and the two injured have escaped safely, said the spokesman.
The rescue work is going on.
The Jianxin Coal Mine, established in 1958 and and affiliated to Jiangxi Coal Group Co, is a large State-owned mine with an annual capacity of more than 80,000 tons.
The mine had previously experienced two deadly accidents in November 2003 and August 2006, which claimed 49 and five lives respectively.
China Daily - China
October 14, 2007
NANCHANG -- A sudden coal and gas eruption in East China's Jianxin Province on Saturday night has left one miner dead, two injured and 18 others trapped, said a spokesman with the provincial work safety watchdog on Sunday.
The accident occurred at 11:45 pm Saturday in Shangtang Township, Fengcheng City when 283 miners were working underground.
Twenty-one of them, 14 gas drainage workers and seven electricians, were at the tunneling working surface when the outburst took place. One was confirmed dead and two others were injured.
As of 8:00 am on Sunday, 262 people and the two injured have escaped safely, said the spokesman.
The rescue work is going on.
The Jianxin Coal Mine, established in 1958 and and affiliated to Jiangxi Coal Group Co, is a large State-owned mine with an annual capacity of more than 80,000 tons.
The mine had previously experienced two deadly accidents in November 2003 and August 2006, which claimed 49 and five lives respectively.
Friday, October 12, 2007
Mine safety chief: Still too dangerous to look for bodies
Mine safety chief: Still too dangerous to look for bodies
Deseret Morning News
October 12, 2007
More than two months after the disaster, the Crandall Canyon mine still is too dangerous to try to recover the bodies of six men, the government's mine-safety chief said Friday. Richard Stickler said the issue came up during a private meeting Thursday in Huntington with relatives of the miners who were trapped more than 1,500 feet below ground during the Aug. 6 cave-in.
"We've left the door open on that. ... I didn't tell them it was impossible," said Stickler, head of the Mine Safety and Health Administration. "I told them we didn't have a safe way to do it at this time."
He said seismic activity still is occurring at the mountain, 120 miles south of Salt Lake City in Emery County.
A recovery effort would involve tunneling through rubble that is supporting walls inside the mine, Stickler said.
"That would create an unsafe condition," he said in an interview with The Associated Press before boarding a plane for Washington, D.C.
Stickler said he was in Utah to also meet with MSHA staff, who are investigating the Crandall Canyon collapse and what lessons can be learned. Three people died in another cave-in Aug. 16 while trying to clear a path toward the six victims.
"We would all like to have answers yesterday," he said. "Historically, investigations take eight months to 16 months.
"I'm not close enough to the accident investigation to know what they're learning," Stickler said. "As soon as they have enough information, I want to be informed."
If changes in mine safety are necessary, "we want to implement them as soon as possible," he said.
MSHA's reputation has taken a beating in Congress. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., last week released a report from another federal agency that warned about conditions at Crandall Canyon in 2004. MSHA apparently never saw it.
"I'm not going to get into that," Stickler replied when asked if Democrats in the House and Senate were unfairly treating his agency. "They have their role to play. We're trying to do the job the best we can."
He said he has not talked to the mine's co-owner, Bob Murray of Murray Energy Corp., since August.
Stickler told the Deseret Morning News that at one point during the recovery efforts, he asked the Emery County sheriff to keep Murray away from daily briefings with families because of his loud, aggressive style in answering questions.
The search for the six miners was suspended Aug. 31.
"We tried to work together as a team, but now that's over. That teamwork has ended," Stickler told the AP, referring to Murray.
Utah is considering whether to inspect mines for safety.
"Certainly two eyes are better than one. ... I don't think there's any problem with that," Stickler said.
Deseret Morning News
October 12, 2007
More than two months after the disaster, the Crandall Canyon mine still is too dangerous to try to recover the bodies of six men, the government's mine-safety chief said Friday. Richard Stickler said the issue came up during a private meeting Thursday in Huntington with relatives of the miners who were trapped more than 1,500 feet below ground during the Aug. 6 cave-in.
"We've left the door open on that. ... I didn't tell them it was impossible," said Stickler, head of the Mine Safety and Health Administration. "I told them we didn't have a safe way to do it at this time."
He said seismic activity still is occurring at the mountain, 120 miles south of Salt Lake City in Emery County.
A recovery effort would involve tunneling through rubble that is supporting walls inside the mine, Stickler said.
"That would create an unsafe condition," he said in an interview with The Associated Press before boarding a plane for Washington, D.C.
Stickler said he was in Utah to also meet with MSHA staff, who are investigating the Crandall Canyon collapse and what lessons can be learned. Three people died in another cave-in Aug. 16 while trying to clear a path toward the six victims.
"We would all like to have answers yesterday," he said. "Historically, investigations take eight months to 16 months.
"I'm not close enough to the accident investigation to know what they're learning," Stickler said. "As soon as they have enough information, I want to be informed."
If changes in mine safety are necessary, "we want to implement them as soon as possible," he said.
MSHA's reputation has taken a beating in Congress. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., last week released a report from another federal agency that warned about conditions at Crandall Canyon in 2004. MSHA apparently never saw it.
"I'm not going to get into that," Stickler replied when asked if Democrats in the House and Senate were unfairly treating his agency. "They have their role to play. We're trying to do the job the best we can."
He said he has not talked to the mine's co-owner, Bob Murray of Murray Energy Corp., since August.
Stickler told the Deseret Morning News that at one point during the recovery efforts, he asked the Emery County sheriff to keep Murray away from daily briefings with families because of his loud, aggressive style in answering questions.
The search for the six miners was suspended Aug. 31.
"We tried to work together as a team, but now that's over. That teamwork has ended," Stickler told the AP, referring to Murray.
Utah is considering whether to inspect mines for safety.
"Certainly two eyes are better than one. ... I don't think there's any problem with that," Stickler said.
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