Wheel Chocks – Mine Worker Protection – It’s the little things that matter

Wheel chock safety is established by more than OSHA, the main federal agency of the US government charged with enforcing the safety administration. MSHA, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration, also has rules to help prevent accidents and fatalities on the job, specifically in underground and overhead mines. Mining refers to both aerial and underground operations, as well as coal mines and metallic / non-metallic mines. The first mining regulations took place in 1891, when children under the age of 12 were prohibited from working in the mines. Certainly, the US government has gone deep into mining standards in recent history to incorporate wheel chock safety, as well as many other rules and regulations.

In 2010, MSHA introduced “Rules for Living,” an outreach and enforcement program designed to strengthen efforts to prevent mining fatalities. 2009 marked the lowest death toll in mining history, yet in 2010, with a mining explosion that killed 29 at the Upper Big Branch mine in West Virginia, the death toll nearly doubled. The Rules for Living highlights the health and safety standards that are most frequently established after a fatality investigation. Targeted application was another goal to be achieved.

The Rules were derived from an analysis of the most common violations that caused deaths, as well as the most common violations of safety regulations and the root causes associated with these deaths. Eleven carbon and 13 metal / non-metal health standards were identified and grouped into nine categories. Included in a category relating to wheel chock safety is blocking against movement, with another related category being hit by mobile equipment, both of which require wheel chocks for personal safety.

For metal / non-metal mining, 30 CFR § 56.14207, titled “Parking Procedures for Unattended Equipment,” states, “Mobile equipment should not be left unattended unless the controls are in the park position and the parking brake is in place. parking, if provided “When parked on a slope, the wheels or tracks of the mobile equipment will wedge or turn into a slope.” A similar, though more extensive rule exists for coal mining. Other standards include references to seat belts, proper use of equipment, power, warning signs and safety lines.

Seeing wheel chocks mentioned in an MSHA document meant to protect mine workers is a huge responsibility, and it only emphasizes that sometimes it’s the little things that matter.