The job of going deep into the earth to dig coal and other minerals always has been dangerous, but it has become safer over the years as federal and state regulations to improve mine safety have taken hold. Even so, the work remains hazardous. The nation was reminded just how perilous underground mining can be in the last couple of days.
An explosion at a West Virginia mine on Monday killed 25 miners and left the fate of four others trapped underground uncertain. The deaths make it the worst mine accident since 1984, when 27 workers were killed in Utah. If the four missing did not survive the explosion thought to be caused by a buildup of methane gas, it would bring the total to 29, the most killed since 1970, when 38 died in a Kentucky mine.
Mine safety, to be sure, has improved considerably over the years. At the turn of the 20th century, it was not unusual for thousands of coal miners to die on the job each year. The worst year on record was 1907, when 3,242 died. There has been steady improvement in safety since then.
Since 2000, according to the Mine Safety and Health Administration, an average of less than 70 coal and noncoal mining deaths have been reported annually. That decline, while welcome, is of little solace to those who have lost loved ones in the latest mine disaster.
Miners, by necessity, rely on an expansive system of regulations and regular inspections to provide and enhance underground safety. Monday’s explosion, prompts pointed questions about the effectiveness of that system.
Massey Energy, owner of the Upper Big Branch Mine where Monday’s explosion took place, says it has an admirable safety record. Facts suggests otherwise. Massey, according to published reports, is regularly cited for safety infractions. The company was cited about 50 times last month for operations at the Big Branch site. Citations apparently were for poor ventilation of dust and methane, failure to maintain escape ways and the accumulation of combustible materials.
It is too early for state and federal mine officials to report with any authority about specific causes of the Monday explosion, but initial indications suggest methane gas — one of the items mentioned in the citations last month — could have been involved.
Massey’s many citations in March are not an aberration; they apparently are a regular occurrence. A Washington Post examination of MSHA records indicates the mine was cited for 1,342 safety violations from 2005 through Monday for a total of $1.89 million in proposed fines, according to those records. The company challenged 422 of the citations, according to federal officials. The remaining charges, then, would seem to have validity.
Massey clearly seems intent on circumventing the associated costs of programs designed to protect miners. The company is probably not alone in doing so. That practice must change. As long as the nation depends on minerals extracted from the earth, those who mine them deserve as safe a workplace as possible. Strict enforcement of regulations, buttressed by regular inspections and stiff penalties for those who put lives at risk, can help guarantee such an environment.