ACCIDENTS FROM HOISTING AND HAULAGE AT METAL AND NONMETALLIC MINES1 Metal- and Nonmetallic-Mine Accident-Prevention Course-Section 3 Revised by Frank E. Cash 2 PURPOSE AND SCOPE The first metal-mine accident-prevention course was prepared and published in 1942-45 as a series of seven miners' circulars (Nos. 51–57). The scope of the course has been broadened, revised, and brought up to date, and it is being published as a similar series of seven miners' circulars (Nos. 51-57, revised) on accident prevention in metal and nonmetallic mines. These circulars are: Accident Statistics (Miners' Circular 51), dealing with general statistics on accidents and injuries at metal and nonmetallic mines, including causes, costs, and the uses of investigations and reports of all accidents. Falls of Rock or Ore (Miners' Circular 52), discussing the selection of mining methods to minimize the hazards of falling and sliding ground, the use of various types of support, and the protection of employees from falls of ground. Hoisting and Haulage (Miners' Circular 53), presenting the hazards of hoisting and haulage at metal and nonmetallic mines and means of preventing accidents. Explosives (Miners' Circular 54), giving information on accidents and injuries due to storing, handling, and using explosives in metal and nonmetallic mines and precautions for preventing them. Fires, Gases, and Ventilation (Miners' Circular 55), explaining the causes of fires in metal and nonmetallic mines and the measures used to prevent, control, and extinguish them; describing gases found in mines and methods of detection and personal protection; and discussing necessity for and standards of proper ventilation. Electrical and Mechanical Hazards (Miners' Circular 56), covering accidents and injuries from electricity and machinery and their prevention and injuries from falls of persons. 1 Work on manuscript completed November 1954. 2 Mining engineer, Bureau of Mines. Health and Miscellaneous Hazards (Miners' Circular 57), including data on dust hazards, means of protection, and sampling devices; protective clothing and equipment; and mine illumination, supervision, discipline, and safety training for employees in metal and non metallic mines. These seven circulars do not contain all the material that may be desired on every phase of accident prevention at metal and nonmetallic mines, but they will serve as bases for discussion. To these may be added supplementary material of particular interest in the field where the course is utilized. This accident-prevention course, offered to the mining industry by the Bureau of Mines, is compiled from studies by the Bureau and experience and knowledge gained by its engineers, to which is added information on safe-mining practices made available by mining companies and their officials. This is the third section of the revised series of circulars that cover various phases of accident prevention in metal and nonmetallic mines; it deals with the occurrence and causes of hoisting and haulage accidents and injuries and suggests preventive measures to guard against the accidents and reduce the frequencv and seriousness of injuries. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Much of the original text is retained in the revised course on Accident Prevention in Metal and Nonmetallic Mines. The revision was under the general supervision of James Westfield, former chief, Health and Safety Division, and Simon H. Ash, former chief, Safety Branch, Bureau of Mines. This section was revised by Frank E. Cash; supplemental material was supplied by the following Bureau engineers: Arthur M. Evans, Dallas, Tex. Lester D. Knill, Salt Lake City, Utah Lester L, Naus, Salt Lake City, Utah Mottier Siebenthal, San Francisco, Calif. The manuscript was reviewed by Catherine S. Hower, Louis H. McGuire, Lester L. Naus, Douglas H. Platt, and Roy G. Stott. The illustrations are from mining and manufacturing companies and Bureau of Mines Publications. HOISTING AND HAULAGE ACCIDENTS Hoisting and haulage accidents generally entail greater economic loss than any other type of mine accident except fires; they usually interrupt production and often damage property even though deaths or injuries do not result. On the other hand, personal injuries may occur without damage to equipment. The economic loss involved in haulage accidents should justify special effort by mine management to reduce hazards; in addition, an obligation exists to provide safe working conditions for employees. Although the initial expenditure for improvement of hoisting and haulage equipment may not seem to be justified, the cost of lost production and compensation payments over an extended period, chargeable directly or indirectly to improper or poorly maintained equipment or to poor practices or procedures, probably would more than pay for improvements in installation or equipment or revised practices and procedures of doubtful safety. The production loss caused by one serious shaft accident could easily cost as much as installation of safety devices to prevent accidents. Haulage injuries generally are serious; less serious injuries may involve the feet, fingers, or hands, but the number of accidents involving broken bones, loss of fingers, or permanent disabilities is relatively large, and the number of fatalities from haulage accidents anything but negligible. INJURY RATES IN HOISTING AND HAULAGE Hoisting and haulage accidents in metal and nonmetallic mines (underground and opencut) caused 17.2 percent of the fatal and 11.7 percent of the nonfatal injuries during the 20-year period 1932–51. The number of injuries and percentages of the total for two 10-year periods and 1952 are shown in table 1. The proportion of fatal to nonfatal injuries in hoisting is high, as are those from haulage in opencut mines. Nonfatal injuries from underground haulage comprise 10.2 percent of the total injuries; but only about 1 of every 82 injuries is fatal, which is lower than the ratio of 1 fatal to each 72 injuries for metal mines as a whole. The frequency rates and percentages of injuries (fatal and nonfatal) from hoisting and haulage in proportion to total injuries for 1932-51 and 1952 are shown in tables 1, 2, and 3. The preliminary figures for 1952 in these tables are not used in the general discussion of statistics or in figures 1 and 2. Accidents reported to the Bureau of Mines by mining companies show that injuries (fatal and nonfatal) from hoisting at underground metal and nonmetallic mines have declined from an average of 206 a year between 1932 and 1941 to 158 a year between 1942 and 1951. |