Blacksville mine to reopen Monday
Consol Energy’s Blacksville No. 2 Mine, idle since March following an underground fire, is expected to resume operations beginning with the morning shift Monday.
The company made the announcement after receiving approval Thursday from the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration and state mining agencies for its plan to restart mining operations at Blacksville.
Consol said it also had begun safety and compliance training for mine employees, providing updates it believes are necessary as a result of changes in the mine and the mine’s ventilation plan.
The mine has been idle since March 12 when smoke was detected coming from the Orndoff air shaft in Wayne Township. All employees were safely evacuated.
Mine rescue teams initially entered the mine but were withdrawn after encountering heat and heavy smoke. Efforts to extinguish the fire were then conducted from the surface. Numerous boreholes were drilled from the surface to allow the company to pump water and inject nitrogen underground into the affected area.
Mine rescue teams were able to re-enter the mine March 27 after it was determined the fire had been extinguished. Work then began on sealing the area affected by the fire from the rest of the mine.
The company completed the construction of the necessary 21 concrete seals May 7. The concrete then needed a week to cure and strengthen.
“The dedication and collaborative efforts of mine management, federal and state agencies, contractors, vendors and our employees on site who worked around-the-clock to safely extinguish the fire and seal that location in the mine are to be commended,” said Jimmy Brock, Consol’s chief operating officer of coal operations, in a release.
“On behalf of all Consol Energy employees, we want to acknowledge and send a special thank you to all those mine rescue team members who worked safely and compliantly to get the Blacksville No. 2 mine back in operation. We would not be in this position without their tireless efforts,” he said.
The mine employs about 650 workers and normally produces about 400,000 tons of coal a month.