Mine rescue competition, more about doing it right
The Southern
August 15, 2013
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Marion, IL — Wednesday’s mine rescue competition was more than about winning.
“It’s a training exercise. You want your mining rescue team to be trained. There’s a lot of camaraderie developed here,” said Bill Jankousky, director of health and safety for Knight Hawk Coal of Perry County.
The competition came on the second day of the Illinois Mining Institute meeting at The Pavilion of the City of Marion.
Jankousky ended up with a bit of extra joy, though: The Knight Hawk Coal team bested nearly a dozen from Illinois and neighboring states of Indiana and Kentucky to capture first place. Each team was made up of eight to 10 miners who wore full gear and worked their way through a disaster situation. There were no practice runs or preparation time.
The teams are told what the disaster is minutes before they take to the course. Teams are timed and judges add points to teams that make mistakes. The goal is to retain the zero point status you have at the onset, said Don McBride from Rend Lake College’s miner trainer program, who helped organize the event.
“You deal with encounters that must be dealt with by a set of rules that have evolved by competition and real-life situations. You get docks or discounts when you make a mistake,” McBride said.
An example of docks or discounts is getting 30 points tacked on if a team moves a simulated explosive source over an ignition source, McBride said.
General Manager John Garrett of Alliance Coal near Carmi competed in mine rescue competition in the late 1970s. He has seen much of the rescue apparatus change and develop through the years.
“Breathing apparatus has become lighter and helps keep your face cooler. Everyone understands the importance of ventilation,” Garrett said.
He was proud of his rescue team’s competitive record this year, saying they had captured a first-place in a recent Kentucky competition.
“All my guys are very competitive. There’s a lot of brotherhood. They take it very seriously. They want to help each other out,” Garrett said.
One of the Alliance rescue team members, Preston Britton said Wednesday’s course offered good rescue problems to solve.
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