Overview of Current US Longwall Gateroad Support Practices: An Update

Details

• Personal Author:
  Esterhuizen, Gabriel S. ; Sears MM ; Tulu IB
• Description:
  In 2015, 40 longwall mines provided nearly 60 percent of U.S. underground coal production. During this time, about 80 percent of ground-fall-related fatalities occurred in areas where the mine roof was supported. In an attempt to better understand the status quo of current longwall support practices in the United States, during a period between 2010 and 2017, researchers from the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) visited a sample of 25 longwall mines representing nearly 50 percent of the currently active longwall mines operating in all of the major U.S. longwall producing regions. The data presented here indicate that the types and amount of roof support being installed in modern U.S. longwall mines have reduced ground-fall accident and injury rates to levels never seen before. However, the complete elimination of unintended roof falls in U.S. longwall mines has remained elusive. The data in this paper can be used by mine operators and engineers to determine where their chosen type and density of roof support occur on the spectrum of observations contained in this database. Additionally, this data can be used to enhance, supplement and support additional research on longwall gateroad support systems. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accidents, Occupational Coal Coal Mining Mining Mortality Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Accidents Author Keywords: Ground Control Coal Mining Fatalities Ground Falls Injuries Longwall Mining Mining Industry Roof Support Underground Mines Underground Mining

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• Series:
  Mining Publications
• ISSN:
  0026-5187
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; Pennsylvania ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  PMRD - Pittsburgh Mining Research Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  52-54
• Volume:
  71
• Issue:
  11
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20058408
• Citation:
  Min Eng 2019 Nov; 71(11):52-54
• Contact Point Address:
  M. M. Sears, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 626 Cochrans Mill Rd, Pittsburgh, PA
• Email:
  msears@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2020
• NORA Priority Area:
  Mining
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Mining Engineering
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:aa2e0f967b733b0c7292637d733c063b554ddc02f561629166c3bc3c96cd46f27f82274951e6d09d3d8fab5455dfcea30af7df239e220ed417b9c5f7d0f8ff4e
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/227946/cdc_227946_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 178.85 KB ]