PROVIDENCE, Ky. — A rescue team found a second Kentucky miner dead Thursday after a roof collapse at an underground coal mine with a long history of safety problems.
Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear identified the miners as Justin Travis, 27, and Michael Carter, 28. The collapse happened late Wednesday at the Dotiki Mine, near Providence.
“Our entire state mourns along with the families and friends,” Beshear said.
Carl Boone, district supervisor for the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration, said crews were still working to retrieve the body of Travis. Boone said the investigation into the collapse will begin as soon as it is determined that the mine is safe to enter.
State and federal records show more than 40 closure orders for the mine over safety violations since January 2009.
MSHA records show the mine was cited 840 times by federal inspectors for safety violations since January 2009.
Beshear said Wednesday that a budget impasse in Frankfort could force a partial government shutdown that could halt, at least temporarily, mine inspections and idle mine rescue teams unless lawmakers reach an agreement on a spending plan before July 1.
Lexington attorney Tony Oppegard, a mine safety advocate and former regulator, decried the accident.
“The reality is that most miners die one at a time or a few at a time,” he said. “But it’s just as devastating to the families as when 29 miners die.”
