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Coal mining is a way of life in West Virginia. It is part of our rich heritage. At The Segal Law Firm, we honor our miners, their families and our mining communities. We all know that mining is hard and dangerous work. Coal miners know every shift the dangers that they face. Mining dangers are present whether working underground or in surface operations. Sadly, West Virginia typically leads the nation in mining injuries and deaths. These injuries and deaths occur despite the fact that federal and state legislation and regulation exists to help provide safe working conditions for our family and friends in the coal and mining industry. The rules must be followed by management. All too often, the safety rules are violated. Mine operators have a duty to see that safety standards are in place and well known. Operators are responsible for training miners on safety matters. Far too often, we learn of a red hat or apprentice miner who is a victim of serious injuries or who is killed. Our extensive experience in coal mining litigation informs us that there are generally several factors and rules violations that lead to injury and death. We have aggressively represented coal

When the lawyers at The Segal Law Firm begin investigating serious mining injuries or deaths, we often hear that the pre-shift safety meeting consists simply of being told things such as “watch out,” “be careful,” or “watch that loose top.” These words of caution are not safety plans or safety meetings such as one would expect to see with a mine operator striving to follow the safety rules and provide a safe mining environment. The lawyers at The Segal Law Firm represented the family of an experienced miner who was killed in a fatal rib fall incident. He left his wife, two sons and other family and friends to grieve a senseless death. The deceased miner was an experienced roofbolter. Adverse mining conditions were experienced by the continuous miner operator and helper to such an extent that they were instructed to reduce mining cut depth. They also started using the continuous miner to scrape at loose rib material. When the deceased went into that entry, he and another roofbolter were instructed to “watch that place.” Watching was not adequate. The roofbolters were just beginning to bolt a third row when a section of mine rib some almost 14 feet long