Man dies at Mettiki mine in Md., 2006's 21st coal-mine fatality

New York (Platts)--22Feb2006

A 35-year-old Maryland man became the 21st U.S. coal-mining fatality this year
when he was killed late Friday at Alliance Resource Partners' Mettiki mine in
Oakland, Garrett County, Md.

The accident occurred about 9:30 p.m. Friday, Mine Safety and Health
Administration spokesman Dirk Fillpot told Platts Coal Trader Tuesday. MSHA's
preliminary report on the accident was not available by press time.

William Junior Miller of Swanton, Md., died at the mine in the westernmost
part of the state after he was crushed, Sgt. Clark Warnick of the Garrett
Bureau of Investigation told Platts Coal Trader Tuesday.

A press release from the Maryland State Police said Miller was standing to the
rear of the locomotive, which was pulling a lowboy loaded with shields, or
hydraulic roof supports used in the longwall operation. "Another mine worker
operating another locomotive pulling a lowboy loaded with shields approached
the victim, apparently not seeing him standing there. The victim was crushed
between the locomotive and overhanging shields."

Warnick said the accident was preliminarily ruled operator error.

ARP officials did not return repeated calls for comment.

The underground bituminous coal mine produced 2.7-mil tons of coal in 2005 and
3.1 million tons in 2004, according to MSHA records. It was citied three times
in 2006 for safety violations and 143 times in 2005 and fined $15,507. The
three citations in 2006 were for alleged sprinkler, roof support and circuit
breaker violations, according to MSHA.

This was the first fatality at the mine since a 53-year-old miner died there
in 1999. That miner was crushed between two slabs of shale that fell from the
mine's roof, MSHA records say.

The mine reopened Saturday, according to unconfirmed reports.

The mine opened in 1977 and has a preparation plant permitted to process 1,350
tons/hour, according to the ARP Web site. The coal is sold under long-term
contract to Virginia Electric and Power for use at its Mt. Storm, W.Va.,
plant.

-- Mark E. Heckathorn, mark_heckathorn@platts.com

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