The 29th annual Ohio Valley Mine Rescue Contest, organized by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ Division of Mineral Resources Management and the National Mine Rescue Association’s Post 6 region, kicks off Wednesday morning US time.

On the roster for the two-day event are teams from Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Maryland and Virginia, as well as Ohio. Contests include mine rescue, breathing apparatus troubleshooting and pre-shift.

“Regional mine safety competitions help develop and test the skills of mine rescue teams by using simulated mine emergency conditions, such as those found at the five simulated mines at ODNR’s Ohio Mine Safety Training Center,” the state agency said.

The mine rescue portion of the contest will be held Wednesday, with the rest of the challenges scheduled for Thursday beginning at 8am.

The event, hosted by the training center in the eastern Ohio town of Cadiz, is being judged by officials from the US Department of Labor, the West Virginia Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and Training, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and the ODNR.