reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-30. Record of Examination

The mine foreman examiner shall send to the director the answers and all other papers of the applicants, together with the tally sheets and a list of the questions and answers as prepared by the mine foreman examiner which shall be filed in the office as public documents.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-32. Certification of Mine Foreman or Assistant Mine Foreman Whose License to Engage in Similar Activities Suspended in Another State

Any person whose license, certificate or similar authority to perform any supervisory or fire boss duties in another state has been suspended or revoked by that state cannot be certified under any provision of this chapter during the period of such suspension or revocation in the other state.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-34. Mine Rescue Crews

The director is hereby authorized to have trained and employed at the rescue stations, operated by the office within the state, such rescue crews as he or she may deem necessary. Each member of a rescue crew shall devote four hours each month for training purposes and shall be available at all times to assist in rescue work at explosions and mine fires. Regular members shall receive for such services the sum of $32 per month, and captains shall receive $35 per month, payable on requisition approved by the director. The director may remove any member of a rescue crew at any time.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-36. Mandatory Safety Programs; Penalties

(a) The director, in consultation with the state Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety, shall promulgate rules in accordance with §29A-1-1 et seq. of this code, detailing the requirements for mine safety programs to be established by coal operators, as provided in §22A-1-36(b) of this code. The rules may require different types of safety programs to be developed, depending upon the output of the particular mine, the number of employees of the particular mine, the location of the particular mine, the physical features of the particular mine, or any other factor deemed relevant by the director.
(b) Within six months of the date when the rules required in §22A-1-36(a) of this code become final, each operator shall develop and submit to the director a comprehensive mine safety program for each mine, in accordance with such rules. Each employee of the mine shall be afforded an opportunity to review and submit comments to the director regarding the modification or revision of such program, prior to submission of such program to the director. Upon submission of such program the director has 90 days to approve, reject, or modify such program. If the program is rejected, the director shall give the operator a reasonable time to correct and resubmit such program. An up-to-date copy of each program shall be placed on file in the office and further copies shall be made available to the miners of each mine and their representatives. Each operator shall undertake all efforts necessary to assure total compliance with the appropriate safety program at each mine and shall fully implement all portions of such program. Once approved, a comprehensive mine safety program shall not be subject to annual review by the director: Provided, That a program may be subject to annual review by the director after a fatality or serious accident involving bodily harm has occurred, or, if the operator has shown a pattern of mine safety violations as defined by §22A-1-15(2) of this code, such a finding shall also warrant annual review by the director. The director shall promulgate emergency rules in order to comply with this subsection.
(c) Any person violating any provision of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $100 nor more than $1,000, or imprisoned in the county jail for not more than six months, or both fined and imprisoned.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-37. Certification of Surface Mine Foremen

(a) In every surface mine, regulated under the provisions of article three or four, chapter twenty-two of this code, where five or more persons are employed in a period of twenty-four hours, the operator shall employ at least one person certified in accordance with the provisions of article seven of this chapter as a mine foreman. Each applicant for certification as a mine foreman shall, at the time of issuance of a certificate of competency: (1) Be a resident or employed in a mine in this state; (2) have had at least three years' experience in surface mining, which shall include at least eighteen months' experience on or at a working section of a surface mine, or be a graduate of the school of mines at West Virginia University or of another accredited mining engineering school and have had at least two years' practical experience in a surface mine, which shall include at least eighteen months' experience on or at a working section of a surface mine; and (3) have demonstrated knowledge of mine safety, first aid, safety appliances, emergency procedures relative to all equipment, state and federal mining laws and regulations and other subjects, by completing such training, education and examinations as may be required under article seven of this chapter.
(b) In surface mines in which the operations are so extensive that the duties devolving upon the mine foreman cannot be discharged by one person, one or more assistant mine foreman may be designated. Such persons shall act under the instruction of the mine foreman who shall be responsible for their conduct in the discharge of their duties. Each assistant so designated shall be certified under the provisions of article seven of this chapter. Each applicant for certification as assistant mine foreman shall, at the time of issuance of a certificate of competency, possess all of the qualifications required of a mine foreman: Provided, That at the time of certification the person is required to have at least two years' experience in surface mining, which shall include eighteen months on or at a working section of a surface mine or be a graduate of the school of mines at West Virginia University or of another accredited mining engineering school and have had twelve months' practical experience in a surface mine, all of which shall have been on or at a working section.
(c) The director shall promulgate such rules as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-38. Applicability and Enforcement of Laws Safeguarding Life and Property; Rules; Authority of Director Regarding Enforcing Safety Laws

All provisions of this chapter intended to safeguard life and property shall extend to all surface-mining operations, regulated under articles three and four, chapter twenty-two of this code, insofar as such laws are applicable thereto. The director shall promulgate reasonable rules in accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code to protect the safety of those employed in and around surface mines. The enforcement of all laws and rules relating to the safety of those employed in and around surface mines is hereby vested in the director and shall be enforced according to the provisions of this chapter.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-39. Reciprocity of Mine Foreman Certification and Experienced Miner Certification

(a) Beginning April 1, 1999, and notwithstanding any other provisions in this code to the contrary, the director, in consultation with the board of miner training, education and certification, established pursuant to the provisions of article seven of this chapter, shall make reciprocity of mine foreman certification and experienced miner certification available to any person certified by a state which accepts West Virginia's mine foreman or experienced miner certifications, if that state's qualifications, examination and certification criteria are substantially equivalent to those utilized by this state.
(b) A person requesting either of these certifications by reciprocity shall submit photographic identification, a current copy of his or her certification card or certificate, verifiable documentation of all degrees held, continuing education successfully completed, and documentation of other training, if required for the certification, and shall also comply with any other criteria as the director, in consultation with the board of miner training, education and certification, may reasonably require from time to time to effectively carry out the provisions of this section: Provided, That the criteria shall include, but is not limited to, the following minimum requirements: (1) When a reciprocity agreement applicable to mine foreman certification has been established with another state, any applicant holding a mine foreman certificate from that state shall take the component of the West Virginia mine foreman certification examination that pertains only to specific West Virginia mining laws and rules and shall pass the examination with a score of at least eighty percent prior to being issued a West Virginia mine foreman certificate; (2) when a reciprocity agreement applicable to experienced miner certification has been established with another state, any applicant holding an experienced miner's certificate from that state shall receive hazard training in accordance with provisions contained in 30 CFR Part 48.11 if the applicant is an underground miner, or in accordance with the provisions contained in 30 CFR Part 48.31 if the applicant is a surface miner, and shall receive instruction in West Virginia mining laws and rules pertinent to any duties that are or will be assigned the miner prior to the miner performing any duties; and (3) records of all training and instruction shall be kept in a book provided exclusively for that purpose which shall be made available upon request to an authorized representative of the director and to authorized representatives of miners in or at the mine.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-40. Reporting Violations, Accident Investigations; Witness Interviews

(a) To the extent permitted by law, any person meeting with, or providing a statement to, the director may request to do so on a confidential basis without the consent, presence, involvement or knowledge of any third party. Upon such a request, the director shall keep the identity of any individual providing such a statement and the statement itself confidential, to the extent permitted by law, and the statement shall be exempt from disclosure under article one, chapter twenty-nine-b of this code. Nothing in this section precludes a person from being represented when speaking with the director. Further, nothing in this section precludes a person under subpoena or who is voluntarily speaking with the director from authorizing any other person from participation in such meeting or statement.
(b) If any miner is entrapped, fatally injured or otherwise unable, as the result of an accident, to designate a representative to observe witness interviews and investigatory hearings conducted in an accident investigation, the miner's closest relative may designate one representative who may, subject to subsection (a) of this section, attend witness interviews and investigatory hearings regarding the accident for the sole purpose of observing such interviews and hearings and conveying information to the accident victim's family: Provided, That the right of a designated representative to observe witness interviews and investigatory hearings pursuant to this subsection shall be subject to subsection (a) of this section and shall not extend to interviews or investigatory hearings of a criminal nature conducted by state or federal inspectors or other state or federal law enforcement officers. No more than five representatives designated pursuant to this section may attend witness interviews and investigatory hearings for the purpose of observing such interviews and hearings and conveying information to accident victims' families.
(c) The director shall, in consultation with the Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety, develop a list of persons skilled in the fields of grief and crisis management, communications and family support. Following any mining accident involving entrapped miners or fatal injuries, the director shall promptly provide the list of such individuals to the families of the accident victim or victims. The individuals contained on the list developed by the director shall be available as a resource to families of accident victims who seek their assistance. The list shall also contain a reference to this code section and a statement that the family has the right to designate a representative of their choosing regardless of whether that person is named on the list.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-42. Surface Ground Control Plan; Automated External Defibrillator

(a) The MSHA-approved surface ground control plan shall serve as the state-approved plan, and the operator, upon approval by MSHA, shall provide a copy of the MSHA-approved surface ground control plan to the director.
(b) Automated external defibrillators (AEDs) shall be required on all surface mining operations. The director shall promulgate emergency rules in order to comply with this section of code, giving special consideration to the climate sensitive nature of AEDs.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-43. Hold Harmless Clause; Decision to Enter Mine

(a) If any injury or death shall occur to any person who has entered any mine, whether active workings, inactive workings, or abandoned workings, without permission, neither:
(1) The owner of that mine or property; nor
(2) The State of West Virginia or any of its political subdivisions, or any agency operating under color of law thereunder; nor
(3) Any person, organization, or entity involved in any rescue or attempted rescue of such person who has committed an entry without permission, shall be held liable in any court or other forum for such injury or death.
(b) The director is authorized to make the decision on whether a mine is too dangerous, and this decision is not subject to review by a court of this state.
(c) A company shall not be required or ordered to conduct rescue operations.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Enforcement › §22A-1-44. Temporary Exemption for Environmental Regulations

In the event of an unauthorized entry by any person or persons into any mine whether active workings, inactive workings, or abandoned workings, neither the owner of that mine or property, nor any other person, organization, or entity involved in any rescue or attempted rescue of such person, may be held liable for any violation of any environmental regulation, if such violation occurred as part of any rescue efforts.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 1A. Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training; Administration; Substance Abuse › §22A-1A-3. Disclosure of Records Exempt; Exceptions

Records of substance abuse and alcohol screening tests, written or otherwise, received by the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training, its employees, agents and representatives are confidential communications and are exempt from disclosure under article one, chapter twenty-nine-b of the code, except as follows:
(a) Where release of the information is authorized solely pursuant to a written consent form signed voluntarily by the person tested. The consent form shall contain the following:
(1) The name of the person who is authorized to obtain the information;
(2) The purpose of the disclosure;
(3) The precise information to be disclosed;
(4) The duration of the consent; and
(5) The signature of the person authorizing the release of the information;
(b) Where the release of the information is compelled by the Board of Appeals or a court of competent jurisdiction;
(c) Where the release of the information is relevant to a legal claim asserted by the person tested;
(d) Where the information is used by the entity conducting the substance abuse or alcohol screening test in defense of a civil or administrative action related to the testing or results, or to consult with its legal counsel; or
(e) Where release of the information is deemed appropriate by the Board of Appeals or a court of competent jurisdiction in a disciplinary proceeding.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-2. Submittal of Detailed Ventilation Plan to Director

(a) A mine operator shall give the director a copy of the United States Department of Labors Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA)-approved plan and any addenda as soon as the operator receives the approval from MSHA. The MSHA-approved plan shall serve as the state-approved plan: Provided, That the MSHA-approved plan shall comply with all provisions of state mining law as set forth in this code or state rules.
(b) In the event of an unforeseen situation requiring immediate action on a plan revision, the operator shall submit the proposed revision to the director and the miners" representative, if any, employed by the operator at the mine when the proposed revision is submitted to MSHA. The director shall work with the operator to review and comment on the proposed plan revision to MSHA as quickly as possible.
(c) Upon approval by MSHA, the plan is enforceable by the director. The approved plan and all revisions and addenda thereto shall be posted on the mine bulletin board and made available for inspection by the miners at that mine for the period of time that they are in effect.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-4a. Use of Belt Air

(a) Definitions. — For purposes of this section, “belt air” means the use of a belt conveyor entry as an intake air course to ventilate the working sections of a mine or areas where mechanized mining equipment is being installed or removed.
(b) Upon the effective date of the enactment of this section, belt air may not be used to ventilate the working sections of a mine or areas where mechanized mining equipment is being installed or removed: Provided, That if an alternative method of ventilation will at all times guarantee no less than the same measure of protection afforded the miners of an underground mine by the foregoing or if the application of the foregoing to an underground mine will result in a diminution of safety to the miners in the mine, the director may approve the interim use of belt air pursuant to the following. The MSHA-approved plan for use of belt air shall serve as the state-approved plan: Provided, That the MSHA-approved plan shall contain all provisions of state mining law as set forth in state code or code of state rules.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-6. Requirements for Movement of Off-Track Mining Equipment in Areas of Active Workings Where Energized Trolley Wires or Trolley Feeder Wires Are Present; Premovement Requirements; Certified and Qualified Persons

Mining equipment being transported or trammed underground, other than ordinary sectional movements, shall be transported or trammed by qualified personnel. When equipment is being transported or trammed where trolley wire is energized on the split of air in which said equipment is being transported or trammed, no person shall be permitted to be inby the equipment in the ventilating split that is passing over such equipment, except those directly involved with transporting or tramming the equipment, and shall be under the supervision of a certified foreman. To avoid accidental contact with power lines, face equipment shall be insulated and assemblies removed, if necessary, so as to provide clearance.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-8. Duties; Ventilation; Loose Coal, Slate or Rocks; Props; Drainage of Water; Man Doors; Instruction of Apprentice Miners

(a) The duties of the mine foreman shall be to keep a careful watch over the ventilating apparatus, the airways, traveling ways, pumps and drainage. He or she shall see that, as the miners advance their excavations, proper breakthroughs are made so as to ventilate properly the mine; that all loose coal, slate and rock overhead in the working places and along the haulways are removed or carefully secured so as to prevent danger to persons employed in such mines, and that sufficient suitable props, caps, timbers, roof bolts or other approved methods of roof supports are furnished for the places where they are to be used and delivered at suitable points. The mine foreman shall have all water drained or hauled out of the working places where practicable, before the miners enter, and such working places shall be kept dry as far as practicable while the miners are at work. It shall be the duty of the mine foreman to see that proper crosscuts are made, and that the ventilation is conducted by means of such crosscuts through the rooms by means of checks or doors placed on the entries or other suitable places, and he or she shall not permit any room to be opened in advance of the ventilation current. The mine foreman, or other certified persons designated by him or her, shall measure the air current with an anemometer or other approved device at least weekly at the inlet and outlet at or near the faces of the advanced headings, and shall keep a record of such measurements in a book or upon a form prescribed by the director. Signs directing the way to outlets or escapeways shall be conspicuously placed throughout the mine.
(b) After July 1, 1971, hinged man doors, at least thirty inches square or the height of the coal seam, shall be installed between the intake and return at intervals of three hundred feet when the height of the coal is below forty-eight inches and at intervals of six hundred feet when the height of the coal is above forty-eight inches.
(c) The duties of the mine foreman and assistant mine foreman shall include the instruction of apprentice miners in the hazards incident to any new work assignments; to assure that any individual given a work assignment in the working face without prior experience on the face is instructed in the hazards incident thereto and supervised by a miner with experience in the tasks to be performed.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-10. Signals on Haulways; Lights at Mouth and Bottom of Shaft; Operation of Cages

On all haulways, where hauling is done by machinery of any kind, the mine foreman shall provide for a proper system of signals, and a conspicuous light or approved trip reflector on the rear of every trip or train of cars when in motion in a mine. When hoisting or lowering of miners occurs in the morning before daylight, or in the evening after darkness, at any mine operated by shaft, the mine foreman shall provide and maintain at the shaft mouth a light of stationary character, sufficient to show the landing and all surrounding objects distinctly, and sufficient light of a stationary character shall be located at the bottom of the shaft so that persons coming to the bottom may clearly discern the cages and other objects contiguous thereto. The mine foreman shall require that no cages on which miners are riding shall be lifted or lowered at a rate of speed greater than one thousand feet per minute and that no mine cars, either empty or loaded, shall be hoisted while miners are being lowered, and no cage having an unstable self-dump platform shall be used for the carrying of miners unless the same is provided with some device by which it may be securely locked when miners are being hoisted or lowered into the mine: Provided, however, That during the initial development of a mine, and only until the shafts are joined, miners shall be permitted to ride cages with one empty car which has been bolted or strapped to the cage.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-11. Boreholes

It shall further be the duty of the mine foreman to have boreholes kept not less than twenty feet in advance of the face, one each twenty feet on sides of the working places that are being driven toward and in dangerous proximity to an abandoned mine or part of a mine which may contain inflammable gases or which is filled with water. These holes shall be drilled whenever any working place in an underground mine approaches within fifty feet of abandoned workings in such mine, as shown by surveys made and certified by a competent engineer or surveyor, or within two hundred feet of any abandoned workings of such mine which cannot be inspected.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-13. Daily Inspection of Working Places; Records

Before the beginning of any shift upon which they shall perform supervisory duties, the mine foreman or his or her assistant shall review carefully and countersign all books and records reflecting the conditions and the areas under their supervision, exclusive of equipment logs, which the operator is required to keep under this chapter. The mine foreman, assistant mine foreman, or fire boss shall visit and carefully examine each working place in which miners will be working at the beginning of each shift before any face equipment is energized and shall examine each working place in the mine at least once every two hours each shift while such miners are at work in such places, and shall direct that each working place shall be secured by props, timbers, roof bolts, or other approved methods of roof support or both where necessary to the end that the working places shall be made safe. The mine foreman or his or her assistants upon observing a violation or potential violation of §22A-2-1 et seq. of this code or any regulation or any plan or agreement promulgated or entered into thereunder shall arrange for the prompt correction thereof. The foreman shall not permit any miner other than a certified foreman, fire boss, assistant mine foreman, assistant mine foreman-fire boss or pumper to be on a working section by himself or herself. Should the mine foreman or his or her assistants find a place to be in a dangerous condition, they shall not leave the place until it is made safe or shall remove the persons working therein until the place is made safe by some competent person designated for that purpose.
He or she shall place his or her initials, time and the date at or near each place he or she examines. He or she shall also record any dangerous conditions and practices found during his or her examination in a book provided for that purpose.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-14. Safety Inspections; Removal of Gases

It shall be the duty of the mine foreman, assistant mine foreman or fire boss to examine all working places under his or her supervision for hazards at least once every two hours during each coal-producing shift, or more often if necessary for safety. In all mines such examinations shall include tests with an approved detector for methane and oxygen deficiency. It shall also be his or her duty to remove as soon as possible after its discovery any accumulations of explosive or noxious gases in active workings, and where practicable, any accumulations of explosive or noxious gases in the worked out and abandoned portions of the mine. It shall be the duty of the mine foreman, assistant mine foreman or fire boss to examine each mine within three hours prior to the beginning of a shift and before any miner in such shift enters the active workings of the mine.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-16. Examinations of Reports of Fire Bosses

The mine foreman shall, each day, read carefully and countersign with ink or indelible pencil all reports entered in the record book of the fire bosses. The mine foreman shall supervise the fire boss or fire bosses, except as provided in section twenty-one of this article. No less frequently than bi-weekly, the superintendent or, if there is no superintendent, the senior person at the mine shall obtain complete copies of the books of the fire bosses, and acknowledge that he or she has reviewed such copies and acted accordingly. This acknowledgment shall be made by signing a book prescribed by the director for that purpose.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-17. Ascertainment, Record and Removal of All Dangers

The mine foreman shall give prompt attention to the removal of all dangers reported to him by his assistants, the fire boss or any other person working in the mine, and in case it is impracticable to remove the danger at once, he shall notify all persons whose safety is menaced thereby to remain away from the area where the dangerous condition exists. He or his assistants or certified persons designated by him shall at least once each week travel and examine the air courses, roads and openings that give access to old workings or falls and make a record of the condition of all places where danger has been found, with ink or indelible pencil in a book provided for that purpose.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-18. Duty of Mine Foreman to Notify Operator When Unable to Comply With Law; Duty of Operator

The mine foreman shall notify, in writing, the operator or superintendent of the mine, and the director, of his inability to comply with any of the requirements of this law, and it shall then become the duty of such operator or superintendent promptly to attend to the matter complained of by the mine foreman so as to enable him to comply with the provisions hereof. Every operator of a mine shall furnish all supplies necessary for the mine foreman to comply with the requirements of this law after being requested to do so in writing by the mine foreman.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-22. Unlawful to Enter Mine Until Fire Boss Reports It Safe; Exceptions

No person shall enter such mine or mines for any purpose at the beginning of work upon shift therein until such signal or warning has been given by the fire boss or bosses as to the safety thereof, as by statute provided, except under the direction of the fire boss or bosses, and then for the purpose of assisting in making the mine safe: Provided, however, That miners regularly employed on a shift during which the mine is being preshift examined by a fire boss or certified person shall be permitted to leave or enter the mine in the performance of their duties.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-23. Authority of Fire Boss to Perform Other Duties

Notwithstanding any other provision in this article contained, any person who holds a certificate issued by the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training certifying his or her competency to act as fire boss may perform the duties of a fire boss and any other duties, statutory or otherwise, for which he or she is qualified, in the same mine or section and on the same day or shift.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-24. Control of Coal Dust; Rock Dusting

(a) In all mines, dangerous accumulations of fine, dry coal and coal dust shall be removed from the mine, and all dry and dusty operating sections and haulageways and conveyors and back entries shall be rock dusted or dust allayed by other methods as may be approved by the director.
(b) All mines or locations in mines that are too wet or too high in incombustible content for a coal dust explosion to initiate or propagate are not required to be rock dusted during the time any of these conditions prevail. Coal dust and other dust in suspension in unusual quantities shall be allayed by sprinkling or other dust allaying devices.
(c) In all dry and dusty mines or sections thereof, rock dust shall be applied and maintained upon the roof, floor and sides of all operating sections, haulageways and parallel entries connected thereto by open crosscuts. Back entries shall be rock dusted. Rock dust shall be so applied to include the last open crosscut of rooms and entries, and to within forty feet of faces. Rock dust shall be maintained in a quantity that the incombustible content of the mine dust that could initiate or propagate an explosion shall not be less than eighty percent. The incombustible content of mine dust in return entries shall also be equal to or greater than eighty percent.
(d) Rock dust shall not contain more than five percent by volume of quartz or free silica particles and shall be pulverized so that one hundred percent will pass through a twenty mesh screen and seventy percent or more will pass through a two hundred mesh screen.
(e) If requested by the director, an operator shall provide records establishing the quantity of bulk and bag rock dust purchased for a period not to exceed the immediately preceding six months.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-26. Roof Support; Specific Requirements

(a) Generally. — The method of mining followed in any coal mine may not expose the miner to unusual dangers from roof falls, and the MSHA-approved plan shall serve as the state-approved plan: Provided, That the MSHA-approved plan shall comply with all provisions of state mining law as set forth in this code or code of state rules.
(b) Roadways, intersections, and arches. — The width of roadways shall not exceed 16 feet unless additional support is added cross sectional. During the development of intersections, the roof between the tangents of the arches in the entry or room shall be supported with artificial roof supports prior to the development of such intersections. All areas where the arch is broken shall be considered as having unsupported roof and such roof should have artificial roof supports installed prior to any other work being performed in the area.
(c) Examinations and corrections. — Where miners are exposed to danger from falls of roof, face and ribs, the operator shall examine and test the roof, face and ribs before any work or machine is started, and as frequently thereafter as may be necessary to insure safety. When dangerous conditions are found, they shall be corrected immediately. A probe or probes for methane detectors shall be provided on each working section other than longwall sections and sections mined solely with continuous miners with integral roof bolters.
(d) Roof bolt recovery. — Roof bolts shall not be recovered where complete extraction of pillars is attempted, where adjacent to clay veins or at the locations of other irregularities, whether natural or otherwise, that induce abnormal hazards. Where roof bolt recovery is permitted, it shall be conducted only in accordance with methods prescribed in the approved roof control plan, and shall be conducted by experienced miners and only where adequate temporary support is provided.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-27. Canopies or Cabs; Electric Face Equipment

An authorized representative of the director may require in any coal mine where the height of the coal bed permits that electric face equipment, including shuttle cars, be provided with substantially constructed canopies or cabs to protect the miners operating such equipment from roof falls and from rib and face rolls.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-28. Equipment to Conform With Height of Seam

The use of underground mining equipment of a size that does not conform to the height of the seam being mined, which creates unsafe working conditions for the miner operating the equipment or others, is prohibited: Provided, That the addition of or use of sideboards on shuttle cars shall be permitted if the shuttle car is equipped with cameras: Provided, however, That shuttle cars with sideboards as manufactured by an equipment manufacturer shall be permitted to be used without the use of cameras if permitted by the director. The Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety shall promulgate such rules as are necessary to effectuate this section.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-29. Use of Authorized Explosives; Storage or Use of Unauthorized Explosives

§22A-2-29. Use of authorized explosives; storage or use of unauthorized explosives.
Permissible explosives or permissible blasting devices only shall be used in blasting coal or other material in underground coal mines. It shall be unlawful to have, use or store any nonpermissible explosives or nonpermissible blasting devices in any coal mine or on the premises of the mine, without a permit from the director.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-30. Surface Magazines for Explosives

Separate surface magazines shall be provided for storage of explosives, detonators and blasting heater elements. Surface magazines shall be constructed of incombustible materials, be reasonably bulletproof and with no metal or sparking material exposed inside the magazine. Surface magazines shall be provided with doors constructed of at least one-fourth inch steel plate lined with a two-inch thickness of wood or the equivalent, properly screened ventilators, and with no openings except for entrances and ventilation, and shall be kept locked securely when unattended. The area for a distance of at least twenty-five feet in all directions shall be kept free of materials of a combustible nature; suitable warning signs shall be erected, so located that a bullet passing directly through the face of the sign will not strike the magazine. The location of magazines shall be not less than two hundred feet from any mine openings, occupied buildings or public roads unless barricaded. If magazines are illuminated electrically, the lamps shall be of vapor-proof type, properly installed and wired, and smoking and open lights shall be prohibited in or near any magazine.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-31. Transportation of Explosives

Individual containers used to carry permissible explosives or detonators shall be constructed of substantial, nonconductive materials, kept closed and maintained in good condition. When explosives or detonators are transported underground in cars moved by means of locomotives, ropes, or other motive power, they shall be in substantially covered cars or in special substantially built covered containers used specifically for transporting detonators or explosives. Any container used for transportation or storage of explosives shall be properly identified or marked. Explosives or detonators shall not be hauled into or out of a mine within five minutes preceding or following a man trip. Where explosives and detonators are transported underground by belts, they shall be handled in the following manner: In the original and unopened cases, in special closed cases constructed of nonconductive material, or in suitable, individual containers. Clearance requirements shall be a minimum of eighteen inches; stop controls shall be provided at loading and unloading points, and an attendant shall supervise the loading and unloading. Neither explosives nor detonators shall be transported on flight or shaking conveyors, mechanical loading machines, locomotives, scrapers, cutting machines, drill trucks, or any self-propelled mobile equipment. If explosives and detonators are transported in the same explosives car or in the same special container, they shall be separated by at least four inches of hardwood partition or the equivalent; the bodies of such cars or containers shall be constructed or lined with nonconductive material. No hand loader shall take into any mine any larger quantity of explosives or detonators than he may reasonably expect to use in any one shift.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-32. Underground Storage of Explosives

Explosives and detonators stored underground shall be kept in section boxes or magazines of substantial construction with no metal exposed on the inside, and be located at least fifteen feet from roadways and power wires in a well rock-dusted location, protected from falls of roof. If not kept in separate boxes or magazines not less than five feet apart, they may be kept in the same box or magazine if separated by at least a four-inch hardwood partition or the equivalent. Not more than a forty-eight hour supply of explosives or detonators shall be stored underground in section boxes or magazines. These boxes or magazines shall be kept at least one hundred feet from the faces and out of the direct line of blasting.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-34. Misfires of Explosives

(a) Where misfires occur with electric detonators, a waiting period of at least five minutes shall elapse before anyone returns to the shot. After such failure, the blasting cable shall be disconnected from the source of power and the battery ends short-circuited before electric connections are examined.
(b) Explosives shall be removed by firing a separate charge at least two feet away from and parallel to the misfired charge or by washing the stemming and the charge from the borehole with water, or by inserting and firing a new primer after the stemming has been washed out.
(c) A careful search of the working place, and, if necessary, of the coal after it reaches the tipple shall be made after blasting a misfired hole, to recover any undetonated explosive.
(d) The handling of a misfired shot shall be under the direct supervision of the mine foreman or a certified person designated by him
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-35. Other Blasting Devices

(a) The provisions governing the handling, storage, transportation and use of permissible explosives shall apply to all other blasting devices employing a heater element when used underground.
(b) Where compressed air is used for blasting, the airlines shall be grounded at the compressor and, if practical, at other low-resistant ground connections along the lines. They shall not be connected in any way to rails, waterlines or other electric return conductors and shall be adequately insulated and protected where they cross electric wires, underneath track or at places where equipment passes over or under. Steel, copper or other airlines connected therewith shall not be handled or repaired when air pressure is in the line. Shutoff valves shall be installed every thousand feet in all compressed-air blasting lines and at all points where branch lines leave the main line and blowdown valves shall not be less than fifty feet from the face and shall be around a corner.
(c) When misfires occur with any other blasting devices, they shall be handled in a safe manner and under the supervision of the mine foreman or a certified person designated by him
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 22A. Miners' Health, Safety and Training › Article 2. Underground Mines › §22A-2-41. Bonding Track Used as Power Conductor

Where track is used as a power conductor, rails and switches on main entries shall be bonded and cross-bonded in such manner as to assure adequate return. At least one rail on secondary track-haulage roads shall be welded or bonded at every joint, and cross bonds shall be installed at intervals of not more than two hundred feet: Provided, however, That rail joints in such secondary haulage roads need not be bonded where a copper feeder adequate in size parallels the track and is electrically connected thereto at intervals of not more than two hundred feet by cross bonds.