Two workers have been killed at a lime mine in Ste Genevieve, Missouri, on Friday 11 April 2014. John Hahl (54) and Chris Rawson (29) were working in a suspended basket at the mine, collecting loose material from a rockface, when the basket was struck by a falling rock, detaching it and causing the men to fall to their deaths, slightly after 8.30 am. Mine operators Mississippi Lime have suspended operations at the mine while the Mine Safety and Health Administration carry out an investigation.
The Mississppi Lime mine at Ste Genevieve, Missouri, where two workers were killed on Friday 11 April 2014). KTVI.
The Ste Genevieve lime mine has suffered two other fatal incidents in the past decade. In 2002 Jerry Vaughn (54), a mechanic, was killed by a falling dust bag, and in 2007 Skeets Myrick (45), a welder, was killed by shifting machinery.
Lime, calcium oxide, is formed by the heating of limestone (calcium carbonate). It can be either produced artificially or mined in areas where limestone deposits have been exposed to heat in the past, usually by volcanic activity or the burning of coal deposits. Most lime mined in Missouri is in fact dolomite (calcium-magnesium carbonate) which is then heated to produce lime.
The approximate location of the Ste Genevieve mine. Google Maps.
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