Underground Coal Mines Face New Rules

Underground coal mines will be required to take far stronger action to prevent explosions, like the one that killed 12 men at the Sago Mine last year, under new emergency rules.

The rules, which take effect Tuesday, follow federal Mine Safety and Health Administration’s conclusion that lightning sparked methane gas in a sealed section of the West Virginia mine. Operators will be required to give up the practice of sealing and forgetting abandoned sections of underground mines. Companies will now be required to monitor such areas for explosive gases.

MSHA described the rules as an attempt to fix problems that led to the Jan. 2, 2006, Sago methane-gas explosion and another that killed five men at the Darby Mine No. 1 in Harlan County, Ky., last May 20. Both occurred in sealed, abandoned areas.

MEMO: EXCERPTED FROM NATIONAL BRIEFS

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