Preventing Conveyor Belt Fatalities in Mining
By Colin Fluxman
September 18, 2020 - MSHA reports that there have been eight fatalities involving belt conveyors in the mining industry since January 26, 2017. Six involved miners working near moving conveyors, while two involved maintenance of an idle conveyor.
All of these fatalities could have been prevented with proper lock-out/tag-out and blocking against motion before working.
The most recent fatality, involving a miner coming in contact with a moving conveyor, is under investigation.
On December 23, 2019, a miner on a belt move crew was fatally injured while removing a splice pin from a 72-inch mainline conveyor.
A belt gripper and a ratchet-style come-along failed, releasing stored energy in a tightly stretched portion of the belt, causing the belting to suddenly become taut and shift upward, pinning the miner between the belt and frame of the belt tailpiece.
The agency lists multiple best practices for working safely near belt conveyors, including:
- Identify, isolate and control stored mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, and gravitational energy;
- Effectively block the belt conveyor to prevent movement in either direction;
- Relieve belt tension by releasing energy at the takeup/belt storage system. Remember: Some tensile energy might still exist;
- Position belt splice in an area of safe access to avoid pinch points;
- Deenergize electrical power, and lock and tag the main disconnect before beginning maintenance. Permit only the person who installed a lock and tag to remove them – and only after completing the work; and
- Never lock out start-and-stop controls or belt switches, as they don’t disconnect power conductors.