MSHA HANDBOOK SERIES - PH13-V-1 - Mine Safety and Health ...

COAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH
GENERAL INSPECTION PROCEDURES HANDBOOK CHAPTER 3
consideration to the health and safety of miners in establishing abatement times.
If a 104(b) order is issued, the affected portion of the mine must be closed, which
may result in the closure of a working section or possibly the entire mine.
At least one entry in each intake and return aircourse shall be inspected in its
entirety for compliance with applicable standards and approved plans. Special
attention should be given to ventilation controls, personnel door conditions
and spacing, personnel door static pressures (refer to Mandoor Static Force
and Calculation of Static Force: 73 Fed. Reg. 80580 (Dec. 31, 2008) for further
guidance), mine roof conditions, rock dust application, examination
certifications, escape facilities, and any equipment operated in the aircourses.
Additional entries and/or crosscuts within a multiple entry aircourse may
need to be traveled to fully evaluate operator compliance with applicable
standards and approved ventilation plans.
When inspecting escapeways, conduct a function test of the post-accident
communication and tracking system by contacting the responsible person
using the post-accident untethered communication device and requesting that
the responsible person identify the location of a miner in the escapeway, who
is at a location known to the inspector.
Inspectors shall evaluate the carrying capacity of escape capsules to determine
if all miners underground could be evacuated in a swift and timely manner,
including disabled miners. Inspectors shall also determine if each escapeway
is maintained in a safe condition to always assure passage of miners and
disabled miners using an escape capsule to evacuate to the surface.
Documentation Required: The inspector should record in the inspection notes each
aircourse that is inspected. The aircourse should be identified in the inspection notes
as it appears in the ITS. The inspector is not required to document the inspection of
aircourses by date and initials in the ITS. If an aircourse is not inspected in its
entirety, the starting and stopping points, as correlated to a permanent reference point
such as a crosscut number or spad number on the mine map should be included in the
inspection notes. The inspector should clearly mark the extent of daily travels that
contribute to the E01 inspection by date and initials on the mine tracking map,
including any approved evaluation or measurement point locations associated with the
aircourse and the beginning and ending point of each day’s travel until each intake or
return aircourse is fully inspected (this does not apply to routine travel of or incidental
travel through an aircourse).
2. Atmospheric Monitoring Systems (AMS). The inspector shall examine AMS
components and observe the operator making a required calibration of
system sensors. Data and times obtained during the inspection should be
Release 1 (February 2013) 3-42