Live Human Test of 96 Hour Emergency Breathable Air Refuge Successfully Completed!

Live Human Test of 96 Hour Emergency Breathable Air Refuge Successfully Completed!

September 17, 2007

Chapmanville WV - After more than 100,000 hits to the Mine Lifeline website last week, it is apparent that the interest in providing breathable air to trapped miners extends well beyond the mining community.
“Providing live streaming video to the general public allowed viewers, who might not understand this test, to see it first hand,” said James Nagle, IT/Operations Manager of Mine Lifeline, LLC. “I initially struggled to provide a still photograph from the mine site due to the limitations of the Internet connection. We ran more than two miles of wire and added sophisticated networking equipment in order to provide a connection fast enough to stream the live video. It was well worth the effort,” he added.
“We have performed many calculations over the past year to predict the success of our design, but there is nothing like an actual test to see how everything performs. Our results were actually better than expected. The live test provided us with hands on experience in maintaining a breathable environment. We also confirmed that the average miner is capable of using our system for survival. They [the miners] were pleased to see how easy it was to operate. The dynamics of maintaining breathable air in an emergency situation may be more complex than first thought. We were somewhat surprised by the differences detected in air quality caused by activities as simple as eating lunch. However, it is clear that the ExtendAir® lithium hydroxide curtains used for CO2 removal are more than capable of controlling the environment. The data we collected is invaluable,” said Jeremy Abraham, Chief Member of Mine Lifeline, LLC.
Mine Lifeline, LLC is looking forward to providing the results of this test to the mining industry as well as MSHA and NIOSH. “We felt it was absolutely necessary to perform this test. We understand why MSHA, NIOSH, and even the State of West Virginia could not participate or sanction the testing. We also knew that these organizations were not preventing us from conducting a live test. As one of the smallest companies in this business, we think it speaks volumes about our commitment to provide simple, workable, and tested 96 hour breathable air systems to the mining industry. We focused our efforts on performing the live test instead of finding excuses why we couldn't. We have always known our system could easily adapt to West Virginia's shelter definitions. They [West Virginia] should expect our application to be forthcoming. We believe our test will provide a wealth of information to both MSHA and NIOSH in finalizing their refuge standards,” said Jeremy Abraham.
Mine Lifeline, LLC is a leading manufacturer of Mine Safety Equipment based in Chapmanville, WV