united states mine rescue association
Calendar of Mine Disaster Anniversaries
Commemorating mine disasters where 10 or more miners were killed
(Follow these links for All Coal and All Metal/Nonmetal mine disasters)
2024
Including Rescuer Deaths and Successful Rescues
Search All U.S. Mine Disaster records since 1839.  And visit our Safety Training Repository for related disaster PowerPoint Presentations, Videos, and Adobe PDF documents.


Search Parameters for ALL Mine Disasters:
Year  |  Month  |  State  |  City and State  |  Mine Name  |  Mineral Type  |  Cause
ALL Coal Disasters ALL M/NM Disasters

Or try the Key Letter Search Tool Magnify Icon to locate mine disasters by name.


Mine Accident Research Documents
MSHA's Fatality Archive Database External Link
This searchable database was created by the National Mine Health and Safety Academy library External Link as an index to its collection of fatality reports.  To begin, select the filters tab on the upper left of the screen and identify your search criteria. (screenshot)
Successful Mine Rescues  (MS Word format)    (PDF format)
Listed in descending chronological order, this file contains more than 1,350 successful rescues in the United States.  See more.
More Successful Mine Rescues from 1916 and 1917
Contains summary information about 18 incidents from these years where miners were rescued.  Source: USBM Annual Report
Successful Anthracite Mine Rescues  (PDF format)
Independent of the main Successful Mine Rescues file above, this collection contains only those rescues that have occurred in the Anthracite mining region of Pennsylvania.  See more.
Incidents of Rescuer Death  (MS Word format)    (PDF format)
Listed in descending chronological order, this file contains more than 135 incidents of rescuer death in the United States.  See more.
Carnegie Hero Award Recipients  (PDF format)
Inspired by the bravery that Daniel A. Lyle and Selwyn M. Taylor displayed at the Harwick Mine Disaster in 1904, Andrew Carnegie started the Carnegie Hero Fund.  The PDF file linked here includes awardees associated with mining along with additional resources which you may find interesting.
Children Killed in Mine Accidents (MS Excel format)
This is a compilation of more than 100 incidents involving the death of children in mines.  Source documentation links are provided.  See more.
Women Killed in Mine Accidents (MS Excel format)
This is a compilation of more than 50 incidents involving the death of women in mines.  Source documentation links are provided.  See more.
Loss of Life Among Wearers of Oxygen Breathing Apparatus
This publication is a sequel to I.C. 7279 and contains information on eight deaths among wearers of oxygen breathing apparatus that were overlooked in the original compilation.  Also summarized here.
Utah Abandoned Mine Rescues (PDF format)
From 1977 to 2017, this document provides a summary of 19 incidents of rescue from abandoned mines.
Summary of Instances of Barricading (PDF format)
This document provides a summary of the outcomes of 32 incidents of barricading in US mines from 1909 to 1935.
Mine Accident and Fatality Resources by State
A nationwide and state-by-state collection of documents sure to meet the needs of practically all mine accident and disaster researchers.
Nationwide Accidents
File Collection
Accidents PDF Page Link
Nationwide Fatalities
File Collection
Fatalities PDF Page Link
Nationwide Disasters
File Collection
Disasters PDF Page Link


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