Coal-Mine Systems to Protect U.S. Workers From Machines Proposed
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President Barack Obama’s administration said it will propose requiring detection systems for automated coal-cutting machines to prevent them from crushing miners.
The rule from the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration would make companies install the programming on self-propelled equipment that rips ore from the rock face and loads the chunks onto conveyors or into shuttle cars, according to a statement posted today on the agency’s website. When the system senses a miner within five feet (1.5 meters), it would sound a warning or flash a visual signal. Within three feet, it would halt the device.