Here's what we know about Monday's fatal mining accident in Conemaugh Twp.
CONEMAUGH TWP. ― On Tuesday afternoon, Somerset County Coroner Cullen Swank released the identity of the man who was killed in an underground mine accident Monday at the Maple Springs Mine.
Brandon Frederick, 37, of Johnstown died of multiple blunt impact and crushing injuries to the torso, Swank said. His death has been ruled an accident.
The incident occurred Monday morning at the Maple Springs Mine between Hollsopple and Jerome in Conemaugh Township.
According to Somerset County 911 records, Conemaugh Township EMS, a Cambria Medic unit and the Conemaugh Township Police Department were dispatched at 11 a.m. for an accident at the mine, located along the 1200 block of Penn Avenue.
The county coroner's office was then called to the scene, the report said.
Helping veterans: Naval Academy graduates riding GAP to raise money for veterans
The Maple Springs Mine is one of two active deep mines operated by LCT Energy of Johnstown, which is part of Robindale Energy; the other is Rustic Ridge Mine, near Donegal. According to LCT Energy's website, the Maple Springs Mine produces low-volatile coking coal, which is sold to customers both domestically and abroad to use in making steel. LCT Energy has a total of 177 employees.
A fatality report on the incident posted at the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration's website has classified the accident as "powered haulage," which is described as "caused by the motion of the haulage unit" and refers to motorized mining equipment such as motors and rail cars, conveyers, belt feeders, longwall conveyers, bucket elevators and shuttle cars.
Mark Tercek, president of LCT Energy, sent a company statement to the Daily American on Tuesday about the accident. According to the statement, the worker "was fatally injured when he became trapped between a shuttle car and a mine rib.
"The work crew that was underground at the time of the accident included four miners who were licensed emergency medical technicians. The EMTs promptly assessed the employee's condition and led the effort to transport the employee to the surface where he was transferred to an ambulance."
The company also said they are working with the Mine Safety and Health Administration and the Pennsylvania Bureau of Mine Safety to "complete a thorough investigation of the incident. The investigation is incomplete at this time."
Fall festival: Shanksville event combines car show, craft show and a featured performance by the Derek Woods Band.
Mine safety officers from the state Department of Environmental Protection are also part of the investigation, said Lauren Camarda, regional communications officer for the state Department of Environmental Protection's Southwest Regional Office, in an email to the Daily American.
"DEP and the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) are conducting separate but coordinated investigations," Camarda said. "Upon notification of the incident, DEP immediately issued a compliance order to cease all active mining in the affected section.
"As Pennsylvania’s safety regulator for underground mines, DEP is investigating the cause of the incident and whether corrective actions need to be taken by the operator to ensure that this type of event does not happen again and if mining can safely resume. Thorough investigations of this nature take time and require information gathering, inspections, and may include coordination with other agencies. DEP inspectors are interviewing mine personnel and beginning the underground portion of their investigation."
This is the second fatality at the Maple Springs Mine in two years. In March 2022, Paul Springer of Somerset was killed when he was struck by a rock while working underground at the mine.
The prior incident: Where things stand at the Hollsopple mine where a man was killed March 2
This article originally appeared on The Daily American: Mine worker killed on Oct. 2 in mining accident at Maple Springs Mine
