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West Virginia Office of Miners Health, Safety and Training spokesperson Leslie Fitzwater said Joseph Cassell was working at the No. 4 South section of Rhino Eastern’s Eagle No. 1 operation in Raleigh County preparing to set timbers at the time of the incident.
US Mine Safety and Health Administration spokesperson Amy Louviere said the rib brow that fell and crushed the worker at about 1am measured 100 inches in height by 32 feet in width by 37in thick.
MSHA and the WVOMHST have commenced a joint investigation into the incident.
Operator Rhino Resources said Monday afternoon it was cooperating with authorities as they worked to determine the cause and circumstances of the incident.
“The Eagle No. 1 mine has been temporarily idled while the investigation takes place,” officials said.
Cassell’s death is the seventh in US coal in 2011 and the third in West Virginia.
