 Hey, Doug, you're going to party the whole lot of night? You bet. I wouldn't miss that. Sounds great. Let's hurry up and wrap this up so we can get out of here and get some beer. Okay. I like wine. All right. I thought we barricaded that off. I wonder what's up with that. Ah, they probably got some bad ground or something out there. Well, let's not worry about it. You go get the air hose and I'll go bar down. Okay. In the last 10 years, in the United States' loan, nearly 200 underground miners were killed. And over 30,000 were badly injured by falls of rock and ceiling-related accidents. For a workforce our size, that's a lot of people. Why is this? A lot of this has to do with the fact that we have an ever-present hazard that no other industry has. That is the potential for falling rock. Nearly 60% of the fatalities in underground metal and non-metal mines are roof fall-related. The truth is that most, if not all of these fatalities, could have been avoided by following some basic guidelines. In this video, we'll be going through a complete mining cycle and identifying some simple steps which you can take to keep yourself from getting injured and that might just save your life. Mining is the backbone of this industrial and technical world we live in. Without mining, we would not have many of the things we take for granted every day. Everything on this planet is either grown or it originates from a mine. Mining is not for everyone. It is one of the most demanding jobs you can do for a living. It is also one of the most dangerous jobs in America today. Working in an underground mine can be particularly dangerous. Underground workers like ourselves are constantly exposed to the threat of falling rock. More underground miners are injured and killed in rockfalls than in any other type of accident. Let's go back and analyze the rockfall incident that you saw earlier in this video. Take a close look at the work area and see if you notice anything that could have contributed to such an incident. After a quick review, we'll be going through a typical mining cycle focusing on work habits which can prevent rockfall-related injuries. No two mines are alike and there are many different methods for mining. We will therefore go through a fairly generic mining cycle and highlight some basic principles which every underground miner should know and use. We'll start off the cycle just after the blast which is when the ground is the most unstable. We'll cover the importance of ventilation and wash-down followed by a close visual inspection. Identifying loose material using both visual and sounding techniques is probably the most important skill you can master to prevent a rockfall. We'll also look at some simple but crucial tips for barring down which is your first line of protection against rockfalls and we'll discuss the importance of rockfall awareness during the mucking process as well as during installation of roof support. Finally, we'll highlight alertness by all people in the mine regardless of their job description. In all the steps of the mining process, the bottom line is being alert to the potential for falling rock and constantly aware of your position in relation to the roof support which is your last line of defense. Just when everything is supported and relatively stable another round is loaded and the blast goes off, changing everything and the cycle starts again. The most dangerous part of the mining cycle is right after a blast. That's when the rock's going to be very unstable from blasting and several people have gotten hurt and even killed for not taking good care of the loose ground before they walked in there. After the blast the area should be well ventilated. Ventilation removes fine dust and particles from the air and more importantly dilutes noxious gases such as carbon monoxide and oxides of nitrogen which may have resulted from the blast. The initial entry into a blasted heading is one of the most potentially dangerous situations you'll encounter. There will certainly be loose rock near the face and often the shock from the blast will loosen other rock in the heading sometimes even causing ground support to fail. As you enter a freshly blasted heading stay beneath supported ground and carefully inspect the entire area for signs of loose rock or any shifting which may have occurred. During this initial visual inspection look closely at both supported and unsupported ground. The shock from a blast can easily cause shifting of stable or supported rock. You know when an opposite crew comes in and blasts a course is going to loosen up rock. It's just the way it goes with the territory. So every day I come through and I'll walk back while I'm watering and check my stope area to make sure it's free of any fallen rock. If you see loose rock on the floor make sure you stop and check to see if it came out of the back or rib. If it did either bar down the area or barricade it and report the situation to your supervisor. Once the initial visual inspection is done wash down the entire area. This not only improves air quality by reducing dust but also cleans the rock allowing for easier identification of loose material as well as geological features such as fractures, faults slips and bedding planes. This is a good time to look for missed rounds and bootlegs. Be sure and mark the bootlegs and wash out the explosives if there is a missed round. Otherwise the driller could potentially drill into a live charge. Once we go in after a blast first thing we do is check things out, wash things down and start barring down the back and ribs. And most miners agree that the barring down is probably the most important thing we can do to prevent rockfall accidents. Although some mines use large mobile scaling machinery and others allow scaling of the lower ribs with a mucker bucket quite often scaling is still done manually with a scaling bar. Since far more injuries and fatalities from rockfalls occur during manual scaling we will focus here on the use of a scaling bar. Scaling bars are most often made from aluminum but occasionally they are fiberglass or steel. The basic design is simply a long shaft with a chisel point at one end. The chisel point may be straight or slightly bent usually about 15 to 30 degrees. As this miner scales notice how the angle of the bent chisel allows him to force the tip into a horizontal crack while maintaining his distance from the path of falling rock. If the angle were too large or the bar too short he would have to stand almost directly under the rock in order to get the point into such a crack. The length of the scaling bar should be about 2 feet shorter than the height or width of the working area. Well I've got a long and a short bar and the reason for that is I've got a tall back 12 to 14 feet and I'm narrow so I have a short bar so I can clean my ribs because the long bar is awkward to handle cleaning the ribs. The long bar I can reach the back and stand out of harm's way because it's long enough that I can touch the rock and stand in the clear as I'm barring down. As far as safety gear goes each mine usually has their own guidelines which must be followed. Some type of safety eyewear is generally recommended since many mining tasks present a potential hazard to the eyes. Many companies require miners to wear hand and arm protection while drilling and bolting and some require such protection for scaling as well. The bottom line is learn your mine's safety policy and abide by it. The process of scaling the newly blasted ground begins here under supported ground next to the blasted area. To protect the mucking crew most mines bar down even before mucking begins. The advantage of this is that you tackle the loose rock and you can work off the muck pile and be closer to your work. The drawback is that it's hard to get good footing when standing on the muck pile and where the pile is too high some areas may be difficult to access. Before you begin barring it is wise to closely examine the work area. Take a look at it from different angles. Assess the potential for loose rock and determine if there are any large blocks of loose rock which are keyed in by smaller rocks. This is a knack which takes considerable experience to master and is not an exact science. A good way to learn this is to work closely with an experienced miner and have them help you learn the nuances of the geology in your mine. Sounding is often used to determine if rock is loose. The following example demonstrates the ringing sound of solid rock followed by the more hollow sound often made by loose rock. Although it is an excellent technique it is best not to depend entirely on sounding but rather use both sight and sound together to determine if rock is loose. Before you bar down a piece of loose rock make sure you have good footing and a clear escape route in case more material comes down than you anticipated. Think about where the scaled rock will land and make sure you are positioned out of harm's way. A long bar held at a shallow angle will help you position yourself away from the falling rock. Sometimes sounding the rock is a jabbing or poking at the rock is a good motion to knock small rocks down it works well but when trying to get bigger rocks down it is very important to work the pry tip in behind the rock you are trying to bar keeping yourself in a safe position with the bar and prying away from it. When barring down a heading it is important to bar systematically from supported to unsupported ground develop the habit of starting under supported ground and using the bar to sound all ground ahead of you as you move forward. It is very important when scaling to make sure of any unseen hazards before you go after the obvious loose rock in the back always protect yourself first. In some minds the rock lies at a slight downward angle in the direction of the heading making it virtually impossible to visually assess the back or to bar down loose slabs. In this unique situation it is sometimes possible to bar your way along a rib usually the foot wall rib and work your way back toward the face from where you can then scale your way back toward supported ground. If you use this method it is critical that you sound the ground and bar all loose material above your path as you work your way to the face. If you cannot create a safe path to the face do not go there. Barricade the area and consult your supervisor. Okay we bring the muck through in there and we like to bar down real well because right after the blast there is a lot of loose rock and we like to bar down off the top of the muck pile so that we can reach the upper ribs in the back and we go ahead and muck. Get the round mucked out, we come back in we bar down again to remove all other hazards. If you've been scaling off the muck pile and are confident that there is no loose rock left it is time to muck out the pile. In some cases if the ground is too unstable to allow for mucking without the use of ground support it may be necessary to drill and bolt right off the pile before you begin mucking. If there is not enough room to do the bolting you may have to remove part of the pile first then stop the mucker to bar down, drill and bolt the back before continuing. Some lines encourage the workers to scale the lower rib areas with the mucker bucket. When this is done it is important to make sure that the operator is well protected by supported ground. In mines that use small LHDs or that have a steep hanging wall this practice is generally prohibited and the loose rock is typically all barred down by hand. In any case when mucking is complete it is wise to recheck the entire unsupported area first visually and then by sounding and barring down with a scaling bar. This is to ensure that no rock was loosened during the mucking process. When you're installing roof support the first thing you want to make sure of is that you stay under supported ground and then periodically while you are installing the new roof support you want to check the ground around you in case anything has loosened up. Every mine is unique. That's why it is always necessary to understand your roof control plan and support the roof as called out in the plan. The plan is designed based on geologic conditions and may sometimes even vary from one part of the mine to another. Take into account that the roof control plan only specifies the minimum level of support required. If conditions deteriorate then additional support is required to maintain stable ground and to comply with regulations. Remember that no matter what type of drill you use it is likely that some rock will shake loose as you drill even in an area that has already been scaled. This is especially true of jack leg drilling and many miners have been injured and killed by rock falls while operating a jack leg. When using a jack leg watch for rock loosening as you drill. When you see a potential loose area stop the drill and bar down all loose material. When drilling with a bolter some operators will use the drill to scale down loose material around the area where they are coloring the hole. When this is done it is important that the operator be located well away from the potential path of falling rock. In mines with unstable ground this is not done as much and is sometimes prohibited since the drill boom can be damaged by falling rock. I had an instance in Montana one time and we didn't have the luxury of this little rock guard on the boom and a big one came down and rolled right down the boom and knocked off all my controls in the operator's compartment so I try to be fairly careful. When the roof is supported according to the roof control plan it is now safe to work under it and then drilling for the next round. Before you start and as you drill watch the face for signs of rock loosening especially where the roof meets the rib. Even if bootlegs are not visible it is critical to know the drill patterns so you don't accidentally drill the next round the same as the previous one. More than one driller has been blinded by drilling into a live charge. While drilling remember that even when supported according to the roof control plan material can and will come loose. It is important to develop the habit of regularly checking your roof support for signs of deterioration and loosening of rock between the supports. Rock falls don't happen just in stoves. Anybody that goes underground needs to be aware of them. They can happen anywhere in an underground mine. Every person who enters an underground mine from engineers and geologists to infrequent visitors or contractors should be alert for unstable ground. Simply the change in moisture of the rock surface due to natural evaporation or movement of ground due to mining induced rock stresses can loosen rock over time. Watch for these telltale signs of unstable ground. Loose bolts loose material around bolt plates slabbing or crushing of ribs movement of fractures or slip faces bulges in the mesh cracks in shotcrete dry spots on roof or ribs and loose material on the floor. If you see any of these conditions in your mine, stop and investigate. If you are not able to remedy the situation it is your right and duty to barricade the area and report it to your supervisor. By doing the right thing and not letting such a situation go untended you could save someone's life and it might just be your own. When I was 12 years old I had never had any underground mining experience. First day on the job we got off on the level and I was assigned to an experienced miner. As we were heading to our working heading he pointed up and said somebody ought to bar down that slab. Well, I was listening to him but we kept going. The next day he said the same thing again somebody ought to bar down that slab. Well, it was two weeks later I moved to a different part of the mine and was working through the mine that a motorman had been crushed by a slab on that level that I began to work on initially. And later on that day I came to find out that he was hurt very badly by that slab that I should have barred down. When that old timer was saying someone should have barred that down he was talking about me or himself. I felt bad about that all my life. Most accidents are preventable. Learning and using the concepts we've covered is an effective way to protect yourself from injury due to rockfalls. Let's see how many of these concepts you can recall. After the blast, ventilate the area well. Do a visual assessment to detect any ground movement caused by the blast. Then wet down the entire heading and do a detailed inspection both visually and by sounding. All loose material must be barred down when barring keep these six steps in mind. Use a bar about two feet shorter than the height or width of your work area. Learn to identify loose material by both visual inspection and sounding. Make sure you have good footing to prevent slips and falls. Think about where the barred rock will fall when it comes down. Always lift upward on the bar or away from the path of falling rock. Scale systematically from supported toward unsupported ground. Before mucking, scale as much as possible to protect the mucker from falling material. After mucking, recheck the back and ribs. Sometimes rock will be loosened by the process itself. Even though you've mucked and barred down, putting in ground support can and will loosen rock. Know and follow your roof control plan. Expect rock to loosen and watch for it. Add extra support as needed to hold ground firmly. Stop and bar down all loose material. It is every miner's job to stay alert to changing ground conditions. Watch for signs such as these in all parts of your mind. Loose bolts or material around bolts, slabbing or crushing of ribs, movement of slip faces or fractures, cracks in shot treat or bulges in the meshing, dry spots in the back or ribs, or loose rock on the floor. Injuries and fatalities are not pretty. They have a devastating impact on miners and their families. Many of us have experienced a minor injury or near miss and have developed a false sense of security. This sense of security could easily lead to devastating injury or death. The best way to protect yourself from a potential rockfall is to use good judgment in your daily work and refuse to put yourself at risk. It's hard enough having to tell your fellow coworkers that their buddy is gone, but even more difficult is telling a spouse that they've lost a loved one. Many of us have already lost a friend due to a needless accident, and none of us wants to be next. So think about the things we've covered today and try to make them part of your regular life. It might just save your life.