Independent Review of MSHA's Actions at Crandall Canyon Mine

locations, and along normal travel routes for persons who do not have a fixed work location
(pumper, examiner, etc.).
Another requirement of the Final Rule is that one additional SCSR be provided for each person
on mantrips or mobile equipment used to transport miners into or out of a mine. Also,
operators must provide caches of SCSRs in each escapeway at 30-minute travel distances.
These caches must contain at least one SCSR for each person who could be inby that location at
any given time.
Following the passage of the new requirements for SCSRs, there was a huge demand but a
short supply of the devices. In Program Policy Letter No. P06-V-10 (See Appendix G), MSHA
permitted mine operators to provide a valid purchase order showing a delivery date until
SCSRs became available. District 9 was following national policy on the acceptance of
purchase orders showing SCSRs had been ordered. The district’s ERP compliance spreadsheet
indicated that 17 of the district’s active underground mines had SCSRs on order on August 6,
2007. Only two mines were documented as having all SCSRs in place, and one other mine was
documented as a new mine and the SCSRs not yet required. The district’s ERP compliance
spreadsheet showed that SCSRs were still on order for the Crandall Canyon Mine, but the
Accident Investigation team determined the Mine’s records showed they had all required
SCSRs at the time of the accident on August 6 th .
Mines in District 9 employ approximately 3850 underground miners. At the time of the
August 6 th bounce, the district’s ERP compliance spreadsheet showed that these mines still
had 6337 SCSRs on order. All districts were experiencing a similar shortage of SCSRs.
Conclusion: District 9 followed national policy by ensuring that all operators at least had a
valid purchase order to demonstrate that they were making a good faith effort to provide
SCSRs. However, the majority of mines in District 9 did not have the required number of
SCSRs on August 6, 2007.
Recommendation: The Agency should determine if there are any actions that can be taken to
ensure that SCSRs are provided in accordance with the Final Rule as expeditiously as possible.
This should include re-evaluating the policy of allowing the operator to obtain a purchase
order for the purchase of equipment as compliance with this standard.
Lifelines
The Final Rule outlines requirements of lifelines that mine operators were to install in each
escapeway. The standards require that lifelines be:
• Continuous and durable;
• Installed and maintained throughout the length of each escapeway; and
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