Longtime miner Thomas Eddie Farmer, 50, died January 12 at Luminant Mining's Sulphur Springs mine when a dirt slide occurred and trapped him, according to local newspaper the News-Telegram.
The incident occurred in the early morning hours, and a mine employee called emergency services at 5.40am reporting a fellow worker had been found partially submerged under rubble between a wall and a Hitachi Shovel excavator. Farmer was pronounced dead at 6.23am, the paper said.
A request for further information and comment from the US Mine Safety and Health Administration was not returned by press time.
Local and federal officials have commenced investigations.
According to MSHA statistics, no fatalities had been reported at the mine since at least 1995 and the operation had just two NFDL operator injuries last year, when it produced 1.6 million tons.
