Cody Mathewson, 52, an electrician at Stillwater Mining’s Nye platinum and palladium mine, was recently killed while working underground on air exchange doors.
Mathewson, who had more than 30 years of experience in underground mining, was crushed 1,500 ft. below surface. (Air exchange doors direct the flow of air through the underground shafts.)
Investigators from the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) and Local 8-0001 of the Paper, Allied Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers International union are investigating the exact cause of death. Stillwater is conducting its own investigation.
It’s not the first tragedy at the Nye mine: in 2001, three Stillwater miners were killed in the span of three months, and a year earlier, a miner was killed when he was struck by an underground train. Ten employees have died since the mine opened in 1986. In December 2003, Robert Slone, a miner from Columbus, Ohio, was seriously injured when he was trapped under rock for almost 12 hours.
Following that incident, Stillwater established new safety measures that resulted in a dramatic decrease in injuries. Last year, MSHA gave its “most improved mine award” to Stillwater for the country’s most reduced violations, which were less than half the national average in 2004.
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