An inadequate roof control plan and insufficient safety checks led to the October 2007 death of a Boone County coal miner, federal investigators have concluded.

U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration inspectors cited two serious violations in the death of miner Charles Jason Keeney at Long Branch Energy Corp.'s No. 23 Mine near Wharton.

Keeney, 34, of Danville, was part of a crew that was cleaning a conveyor belt and building roof supports inside the Long Branch operation.

At about 8 p.m. on Oct. 28, 2007, pieces of rock that had previously fallen from the mine roof toppled over, crushing Keeney, according to a new MSHA report.

Keeney and other workers were cleaning up rocks that had fallen from the mine roof about 3 weeks earlier. The largest of the rocks measured seven feet long by nine feet wide by 15 inches thick. It was resting in a vertical position in the work area, MSHA said.

Removal of material at the base of the rock caused it to fall "without warning," MSHA inspectors concluded.

In their report, MSHA investigators said that the mine's roof control plan - previously approved by MSHA - did not include cleanup and support procedures for the area where the roof fall had previously occurred.

Investigators also found that company pre-shift safety examinations had not identified the hazardous condition of the fallen rock.

Fines for the two violations cited by MSHA had not yet been set, said MSHA spokesman Matthew Faraci.

At the time of Keeney's death, MSHA was behind schedule in conducting required quarterly inspections of the Long Branch No. 23 Mine.

The last complete review of the mine by MSHA was finished on Nov. 30, 2006, nearly a year before the fatal accident, according to agency records.

To contact staff writer Ken Ward Jr., use e-mail or call 348-1702.

An inadequate roof control plan and insufficient safety checks led to the October 2007 death of a Boone County coal miner, federal investigators have concluded.

U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration inspectors cited two serious violations in the death of miner Charles Jason Keeney at Long Branch Energy Corp.'s No. 23 Mine near Wharton.

Keeney, 34, of Danville, was part of a crew that was cleaning a conveyor belt and building roof supports inside the Long Branch operation.

At about 8 p.m. on Oct. 28, 2007, pieces of rock that had previously fallen from the mine roof toppled over, crushing Keeney, according to a new MSHA report.

Keeney and other workers were cleaning up rocks that had fallen from the mine roof about 3 weeks earlier. The largest of the rocks measured seven feet long by nine feet wide by 15 inches thick. It was resting in a vertical position in the work area, MSHA said.

Removal of material at the base of the rock caused it to fall "without warning," MSHA inspectors concluded.

In their report, MSHA investigators said that the mine's roof control plan - previously approved by MSHA - did not include cleanup and support procedures for the area where the roof fall had previously occurred.

Investigators also found that company pre-shift safety examinations had not identified the hazardous condition of the fallen rock.

Fines for the two violations cited by MSHA had not yet been set, said MSHA spokesman Matthew Faraci.

At the time of Keeney's death, MSHA was behind schedule in conducting required quarterly inspections of the Long Branch No. 23 Mine.

The last complete review of the mine by MSHA was finished on Nov. 30, 2006, nearly a year before the fatal accident, according to agency records.

To contact staff writer Ken Ward Jr., use e-mail or call 348-1702.