US News
US seeks emergency halt to review coal mine safety (Roundup)
By Tony Czuczka
Feb 3, 2006, 19:00 GMT

Washington - US authorities Thursday asked coal mines across the nation to halt operations for one hour next week to review safety rules after a surge of deadly accidents this year.

The Mine Safety and Health Administration's move followed similar measures by hard-hit West Virginia, where 16 miners have died in coal mine accidents since January 2, including two on Wednesday.

The federal agency called for the timeout to be observed Monday for the first hour of each shift at all 1,400 coal mines in the US, which employ some 75,000 miners.

'I am asking miners and management at every mine operation to do the right thing: Take one hour out for safety's sake this Monday and 'stand down for safety,'' said David Dye, acting assistant secretary of labour for mine safety and health.

In West Virginia mine safety inspectors Thursday began emergency checks of all coal mines on the orders of state governor Joe Manchin, his spokeswoman Lara Ramsburg said.

West Virginia is the No. 2 coal-producing state in the US and one of the nation's poorest regions.

Reacting to the latest deaths, Manchin on Wednesday also asked mine operators to halt production at the start of every shift to review safety rules - a process that could take several hours each time until all workers have been briefed.

Mine companies are cooperating with the request, Ramsburg said in a telephone interview. She declined to speculate on the economic cost of the measures.

'Our main concern is the safety of the miners,' she said. 'We will put that above else, especially the production of a ton of coal. Whatever it costs, it costs - to make sure we get it right.'

Caryn Gresham, a spokeswoman for state mine inspectors, said the safety reviews for each shift should be completed in about a week.

Global attention focussed on West Virginia when 12 miners died after an explosion trapped them in the Sago Mine on January 2. Two more miners were killed January 19 in a fire inside a horizontal shaft.

Three more mine accidents in the state claimed two lives Wednesday, including a man who was driving a bulldozer that struck a gas line and burst into flames.

US mining deaths have generally declined over the past decade. But so far this year, 21 miners have been killed on the job, compared to 57 for all of 2005, government data show.

Coal-fired power plants provide about 51 per cent of US electricity and the trend is rising.

The National Mining Association, which represents US mine operators, said it supported the emergency safety measures.

'We all share an interest in finding out what went wrong' in West Virginia, said the group's spokesman, Luke Popovich. He said it was too early to estimate the economic impact.