West Virginia Coal Electrician Dies in Mine Accident

Officials from the West Virginia Office of Miners’ Health, Safety, and Training recently said that Steven Vernon Keeney, a 40-year-old coal mine electrician, died of injuries from an apparent electrical shock, according to a news report from www.weirtondailytimes. The accident occurred at 12:18 a.m. on Tuesday in the Kanawha County community of Cabin Creek at the Panther Creek Mining American Eagle Mine, where Keeney was a certified electrician.

The agency’s inspectors are still investigating the accident. This accident is the third coal mining fatality in West Virginia this year and the tenth person nationwide. The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration says four have occurred in Kentucky, two in Pennsylvania, and one in Illinois.