Officials Organize First Mine Rescue Team for Virginia

The Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy team will serve as backup emergency responders to company mine rescue teams at every coal mine site in the state.

Charles Boothe, Bluefield Daily Telegraph, W.Va. | March 14, 2016

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(TNS) - For the first time in the state’s history, Virginia now has its own mine rescue team.

The Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy (DMME) team will serve as backup emergency responders to company mine rescue teams at every coal mine site in the state.

“We work out of mine rescue stations in Coeburn in Wise County and in Oakwood in Buchanan County,” said Tarah Kesterson with the DMME. “We (DMME) have offices in Lebanon and Big Stone Gap.”

The mine rescue team was organized as a way to help mining operations cut costs, she said.

“It’s a federal requirement that two mine rescue teams cover each coal mine,” she said. “That’s just the way it has been operating.”

Some companies had two teams, some shared teams, she added.
“It just got too costly for the companies to form two teams,” she said. “We started this team to help them out financially.”

It will also increase safety emergency response time.

Kesterson said the team consists of DMME personnel with a variety of experience and skills, including mine inspectors and technical specialists.

“They all volunteered to be a part of it,” she said.

Kesterson said the team is available to help out at any time, not only with mines but with other disasters.

“If there is an emergency, if we can help, we will definitely be there,” she said.

“Worker safety and a productive economy are top priorities for DMME,” said DMME Director John Warren in a statement. “This team serves both. We have a very experienced group of mine inspectors, technical specialists and emergency managers that stepped up to provide this service for the miners of Virginia in a difficult time for the coal industry.”

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