A series of fatal incidents now points to a crisis at Belaruskali
According to the official Telegram channel of Belaruskali, a mining foreman, Dzmitry Piatrovich, was injured at Mine No. 2 while inspecting longwall workings after a roof fall. He later died in hospital.
Over the past two months, four people have already been killed at the Salihorsk-based company, while three others have been injured.
Pavel Sakalouski, formerly one of the leaders of the Belarusian Independent Trade Union at Belaruskali and now head of the Salidarnast Association, told gazetaby that the succession of tragic incidents already points to a systemic occupational safety crisis at the company:
“In my view, this trend is developing because the authorities prefer to appoint people to many managerial positions on the basis of their loyalty rather than their professional competence.
“As for the latest fatal incident, I can suggest the following. We are talking about a mining foreman, and the accident happened while he was inspecting longwall workings.
“There are sections of old mine workings where mineral extraction had previously taken place. After some time, Belaruskali management decided that additional resources could still be extracted from these areas. However, there is significant detachment of the mine roof and walls there, which increases the risk of collapse.
“So there is a possibility that the foreman who died was inspecting one of these workings.”
Comments