Kentucky coal mine explosion knocks worker down 380-foot elevator shaft - Courier Journal

Benjamin Tobin Louisville Courier Journal

Published 9:59 AM EDT Aug 2, 2019

Authorities are currently trying to rescue a worker who fell down an elevator shaft following a methane gas explosion Wednesday afternoon at a mine in Muhlenberg County.

Richard L. Knapp, a 62-year-old welder/iron worker of a contracting firm in Illinois, was constructing a form which would be used to fill a mine shaft with concrete. This was part of an effort to close Paradise Mine in Central City, Kentucky, which had been idled for a couple of months, according to the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet.

Around 5:30 p.m. Wednesday afternoon, a methane gas explosion caused Knapp to fall down the shaft, which is about 380 feet deep with water at the bottom, according to cabinet spokesperson John Mura.

It is not clear what caused the explosion.

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Mura said that as of Thursday, there were still "dangerous levels of methane gas in the shaft." Though ventilating tubes have been inserted to try to mitigate the methane levels, "there is still no way to get a person down the shaft safely to look for Mr. Knapp," Mura said.

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Mine Safety and Health Administration spokesperson Amy Louviere said she is "waiting for an update currently" on the status of Knapp.

Representatives of the cabinet, the Mine Safety and Health Administration and KenAmerican Resources, the owner of Paradise Mine, are on the site to assist in the recovery process.

All operations were shutdown at the mine on Wednesday evening, and it remains closed, according to the cabinet.

KenAmerican Resources did not respond to a phone call.

This story will be updated.

Contact Ben Tobin at bjtobin@gannett.com and 502-582-4181 or follow on Twitter @TobinBen. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: https://subscribe.courier-journal.com.

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https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/local/2019/08/02/kentucky-coal-mine-explosion-traps-worker-muhlenberg-county-shaft/1898199001/

2019-08-02 13:27:00Z
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