Accidents involving powered haulage and mobile equipment such as haul trucks often account for the greatest number of fatalities in the mining industry each year. Despite previous analyses that have identified root causes and other contributing factors, there is still a need to better understand the events leading up to these types of accidents, what lessons may be learned, and what strategies can be employed to prevent fatal accidents from occurring. This study examines naturalistic decision-making (NDM) using the critical decision method (CDM). The CDM is a retrospective interview approach used to explore time-limited, high-stakes decision-making that has not been often used in the mining industry. In this study, the CDM is used to obtain more information about what happens prior to, during, and after a potentially fatal situation such as a near-miss event, loss of control, or minor accident involving equipment damage. Researchers captured first-hand accounts from 21 haul truck operators involved in near-miss events from mine sites of various sizes and commodities throughout the USA. These accounts provide rich and detailed narratives from the perspective of haul truck operators themselves and reveal insights into what decisions haul truck operators make, what sensory cues they perceive, and what strategies they employ during challenging and non-routine situations so that haul truck operators can be better prepared in the future. Themes critical to operator decision- making emerged from the data with the top three including, know your truck, situational awareness, and safety first. These themes suggest that haul truck operators need to have a mastery level understanding of how their truck works in order to effectively react, that haul truck operators need to maintain an understanding of conditions and their environment, and that haul truck operators should prioritize safety when making decisions. To support haul truck knowledge acquisition and retention, mine operators may consider providing more detailed and hands on training including practice time in a variety of conditions. To support situational awareness, mine operators may consider investing in collision warning technologies and emphasizing good communication practices. Lastly, mine operators may consider continually emphasizing safety and their commitment to safe practices to help all mine workers internalize safety as a value, thereby reducing or eliminating related conflicts in decision- making. These results, along with potential solutions offered by study participants, can help to inform future research, raise awareness about hidden hazards, and build more creative interventions and realistic training scenarios for use by the industry to address haul truck safety issues. © This is a U.S. Government work and not under copyright protection in the US; foreign copyright protection may apply 2024.

Haul truck fatal accidents and injuries continue to be a significant concern for the mining industry. However, the availability of high-quality training materials continues to be limited. Near-miss incident accounts, if packaged well, could help fill this gap, because for every fatality, there are hundreds of reportable accidents and thousands of undocumented near misses. Researchers from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) collected detailed accounts of 21 near-miss incidents in virtual interviews with mineworkers at surface mining operations across the country. From these interviews, researchers created four simulation videos using the Unity game engine. The simulation videos bring these events to life through first-person retelling and various visual perspectives of actual events. Each video exemplifies a critical safety message and a common haul truck hazard. This paper describes the process of taking narratives and turning them into impactful visual stories using graphic simulation. NIOSH plans to co-release these simulation videos with the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) to the mining industry to raise awareness and ultimately help reduce haul truck-related accidents and fatalities in mining.

The ability to identify hazards during a workplace examination is a critical skill for mineworkers to have in order to maintain a safe workplace. While research suggests that being able to successfully recognize hazards requires a complex set of competencies, it is unclear which competencies are most critical to adequately perform a workplace examination. This paper presents a hazard recognition competencies framework as an explanation of the competencies that affect mineworker hazard recognition. To better understand how the industry is selecting and preparing workplace examiners, researchers from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) interviewed nine health and safety (H&S) professionals at surface stone, sand, and gravel mine sites throughout the USA. A primary purpose of these interviews was to verify the competencies included in the hazard recognition competencies framework and to understand why these competencies are critical. Finally, the results of this study are presented within the context of current NIOSH research findings related to hazard recognition.

Within the metal/nonmetal mining sector, fall-related incidents account for a large proportion of fatal and non-fatal injuries. However, the events and contributing factors leading up to these incidents have not been fully investigated. To help provide a clearer picture of these factors, an analysis of imminent danger orders issued by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) between 2010 and 2017 at both surface and underground metal/nonmetal mine sites revealed that most orders are associated with fall risks. Of these cases, 84% involved the workers not using fall protection, fall protection not being provided, or the improper use of fall protection. Fall risks for workers most frequently occurred when standing on mobile equipment, performing maintenance and repairs on plant equipment, or working near highwalls. In most cases, a single, basic, corrective action (e.g., using fall protection) would have allowed workers to perform the task safely. Overall, these findings suggest that a systematic approach is needed to identify, eliminate, and prevent imminent danger situations. Furthermore, to protect mineworkers from falls from height, frequently performed tasks requiring fall protection should be redesigned to eliminate the reliance on personal fall protection.