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Va. Company Pays Price for Violating Mine Safety Laws

Oct. 6, 2000

A & G Coal Corp. of Wise, Va., pled guilty yesterday in United\r\nStates Court for the Western District of Virginia to two\r\ncounts of willfully violating mine safety laws.

EHS Today Staff

A & G Coal Corp. of Wise, Va., pled guilty yesterday in United States Court for the Western District of Virginia to two counts of willfully violating mine safety laws.

A & G pled guilty to failing to ensure that an adequate inspection of its water truck was made and failing to ensure that the water truck had adequate breaks.

The plea agreement entered into the case requires A & G to pay $450,000 to the Court before Oct. 17, according to U.S. Attorney Robert Crouch.

A miner was killed on March 29, 1999, when a water truck that he was driving left the roadway on a descending grade at A & G''s'' Bold Camp strip mine and overturned.

At the hearing, evidence was presented that showed the water truck had only one of six brakes that was operable, leaked large amounts of power steering fluid, and had a driver''s side door that was difficult to open from the inside.

Sentencing for the company is scheduled for Jan. 10, 2001 in Big Stone Gap, Va.

The case was investigated by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA).

by Virginia Sutcliffe

About the Author

EHS Today Staff

EHS Today's editorial staff includes:

Dave Blanchard, Editor-in-Chief: During his career Dave has led the editorial management of many of Endeavor Business Media's best-known brands, including IndustryWeek, EHS Today, Material Handling & Logistics, Logistics Today, Supply Chain Technology News, and Business Finance. In addition, he serves as senior content director of the annual Safety Leadership Conference. With over 30 years of B2B media experience, Dave literally wrote the book on supply chain management, Supply Chain Management Best Practices (John Wiley & Sons, 2021), which has been translated into several languages and is currently in its third edition. He is a frequent speaker and moderator at major trade shows and conferences, and has won numerous awards for writing and editing. He is a voting member of the jury of the Logistics Hall of Fame, and is a graduate of Northern Illinois University.

Adrienne Selko, Senior Editor: In addition to her roles with EHS Today and the Safety Leadership Conference, Adrienne is also a senior editor at IndustryWeek and has written about many topics, with her current focus on workforce development strategies. She is also a senior editor at Material Handling & Logistics. Previously she was in corporate communications at a medical manufacturing company as well as a large regional bank. She is the author of Do I Have to Wear Garlic Around My Neck?, which made the Cleveland Plain Dealer's best sellers list.

Nicole Stempak, Managing Editor: Nicole Stempak is managing editor of EHS Today and conference content manager of the Safety Leadership Conference.