Back injuries in underground coal mining. Open File Report, July 1984-December 1989 (Final)

Technical Report · Fri Dec 01 04:00:00 EST 1989

OSTI ID:7129289

Stobbe, T J; Plummer, R W; Jaraiedi, M

The report investigates the nature, cause and treatment of 224 back injuries which occurred in 156 different situations in underground coal mines. A detailed interview was conducted with each injured miner as 137 variables were explored to provide a complete picture of the injury scenario. The miners worked at 23 mines in six states. An important finding of the study was that sudden movement, which occurred in 52% of the injuries, is a more frequent factor than heavy lifting in causing back injuries. Along with sudden movement, other major injury causing factors were equipment seat design, lifting, cable handling, and slips/trips. No significant differences were found between the injury scenarios associated with lost time and non-lost time injuries; thus, both sets of scenarios should be used in developing back injury control strategies. Medical treatment and rehabilitation varied in content and quality. Based on the information collected in the study, recommendations were made regarding equipment design, mechanical assists and procedures for material handling, training, etc., which, if implemented, will assist in reducing the frequency of back injuries in underground coal mining.

• Research Organization: West Virginia Univ., Morgantown, WV (USA). Dept. of Industrial Engineering
• OSTI ID: 7129289
• Report Number(s): PB-90-202938/XAB; WVU/IE--50
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT
016000* -- Coal
Lignite
& Peat-- Health & Safety
ACCIDENTS
BODY
COAL MINING
DATA
DOCUMENT TYPES
HAZARDS
HEALTH HAZARDS
INFORMATION
INJURIES
MINING
NUMERICAL DATA
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY
ORGANS
PROGRESS REPORT
RECOMMENDATIONS
SAFETY
SKELETON
STATISTICAL DATA
UNDERGROUND MINING
VERTEBRAE