The Trump administration and coal industry allies are insisting that a federal black lung trust fund will continue to pay benefits to sick miners despite a drastic cut in funding. But the expected shortfalls will be covered by taxpayers instead …
West Virginia Governor Jim Justice’s family coal companies are breaching their environmental responsibilities, according to Kentucky regulators, who are seeking millions in additional fines for surface mining areas that haven’t been cleaned up. The Justice companies, which are now being …
Eight former supervisors and safety officers at a Kentucky coal company were indicted on federal charges that they rigged dust monitoring in underground mines, forcing miners to work in the kind of dirty conditions that can lead to black lung …
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency is targeting opioid abuse in Appalachia by establishing a new field office in Kentucky to oversee a region ravaged by overdose deaths. The new Louisville field office will have a special agent in charge to …
Kathy Bartlett watched helplessly this spring as Kentucky lawmakers cut back on mine safety inspections and replaced them with coaching sessions on miners’ safety habits. She knows more than most what’s at stake. Bartlett’s son, Rickey Thorpe, was crushed to …
The nation’s coal mines are headed for another record low year in workplace deaths, and the outgoing federal mine safety chief said he’s hopeful that mining companies will work with the incoming Trump administration to continue that progress. Joe Main …
Underground coal mines will ramp up testing for the dust that causes breathing problems and leads to black lung disease under a new federal rule that took effect February 1. The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration is requiring coal …
A coal miner in western Kentucky died after being pinned against a wall by a mobile digging machine in an underground mine, the first coal mining death in the state this year and the third nationally. The death prompted a …
Amid layoffs and idled operations, the U.S. coal industry is close to setting a record low for on-the-job deaths in coal mines. In late December, there were 11 deaths in coal mines nationwide for the year, putting the industry on …
Louisville, Ky., has reached a $6 million settlement with five people injured in a 2009 derailing of a small train that carries families around the city’s zoo. The open-air, small-engine train was carrying 29 passengers and an operator when it …
