Sep 30, 2013 2 min read

United Mine Workers of America Career Centers, based in Washington, is receiving $179,289 in second-year funding to provide training in the conduct of mine rescue skills contests through a the U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration grant. Participating in well-designed mine rescue contests is vital for mine rescue personnel to maintain and improve mine emergency preparedness protocols. After completing classroom curriculum and training exercises, trainees will apply their knowledge in a variety of hands-on training scenarios in simulated coal mines.

MSHA on Monday awarded $582,804 in grants through its Brookwood-Sago program to five organizations, including the UMWA, that provide education and training within the mining industry. The funding will be used to develop and implement training and related materials for mine emergency preparedness, as well as for the prevention of accidents in underground mines.

Training grants are awarded for a 12-month performance period, and applicants must be states or nonprofit entities. The grants program was established through a provision in the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response Act of 2006. The grants were named in remembrance of 13 men who died in two explosions at the Jim Walter Resources Inc. No. 5 Mine in Brookwood, Ala., in 2001 and 12 men who died in an explosion at the Sago Mine in Tallmansville, W.Va., in 2006.