Updates to our Terms of Use

We are updating our Terms of Use. Please carefully review the updated Terms before proceeding to our website.

Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Back issues
Courthouse News Service Courthouse News Service

Circuit Tosses Citation Against Mining Operator

DENVER (CN) - The 10th Circuit has overturned a citation issued to Plateau Mining Corp. in connection with a methane explosion in Utah's Willow Creek Mine that killed two coal miners and injured eight others.

The Mine Safety and Health Administration's citation claimed the accident in 2000 occurred because the mine's ventilation system was operating beyond capacity.

The appeals court found that there was no evidence that the ventilation system had been pushed beyond its capacity or that the system was not performing as required or expected. Without this evidence, the administration lacked the proof needed to issue the citation.

Willow Creek Mine is an underground coal mine in Carbon County, Utah. Miners extract the coal using a method called "longwall mining," which allows them to remove a seam of coal without leaving behind pillars of coal for support. Willow Creek is considered a "gassy" mine because its mining operations release a significant amount of methane.

Categories / Uncategorized

Subscribe to Closing Arguments

Sign up for new weekly newsletter Closing Arguments to get the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and hot cases and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world.

Loading...