Flyrock: A Continuing Blast Safety Threat

摘要

Flyrock is the second leading cause of all blasting related injuries in surface coal, metal andnonmetal mining operations. It is also a primary cause of property damage, monetary losses and“near misses.” For the period 1978 to 2008 flyrock accounted for 11.6 percent of all blastingrelatedinjuries in surface coal, metal, and nonmetal mines. A large amount of published materialhas been published on the safety hazard of flyrock, on ways to predict how far rock will travelfrom a blast, as well as ways to protect mine personnel and neighbors from flyrock. However,flyrock incidents continue to occur resulting in fatalities and “near misses” that could havecaused fatalities. It was only good fortune in some instances that no one was in the mine'sparking lot or other unprotected area when flyrock rained down or in harm's way when a largerock punched a hole in the roof of a building or other structure.A review of collected news reports and investigations of flyrock incidents over the past severalyears continue to reveal near misses which are truly cause for concern. A review of some of theserecent incidents and accidents is made to stress the need for constant awareness and use ofpractices that will control or prevent flyrock hazards. A discussion on the characterization ofblasting incidents and a safety concept is presented along with an example. Examples ofsignificant flyrock damage are presented and the factors to prevent flyrock are also stressedagain.