Survey of Surface Mining Accidents—Mobile Equipment

A survey of mobile mining equipment related accidents occurring in surface mining operations indicates that in 1978 there were 19,545 non-fatal injuries. Mobile equipment as defined in this paper was involved in 3,029 or 15.5% of these nonfatal injuries. Dumpers and front-end loaders were involved in 51.3% of these mobile equipment related injuries.

For the nine-year average (1970–78), mobile equipment was involved in 46.3% of the fatalities occurring in surface mining-operations. Again dumpers and loaders were involved in over half or 63.7% of the mobile equipment related fatalities. The type accident occurring the most with mobile equipment was “rollover” (214) with 86 front-end loaders and 71 dumpers, which accounted for 73.4% of the equipment involved in this type accident.