Newswise — Could a disaster similar to Monday's explosion inside an underground coal mine in northeast China happen in the United States? Two mining and mine safety experts from the University of Missouri-Rolla are available to the media today to comment on Monday's disaster in China, which killed more than 200 people, and the likelihood of such an incident occurring in the United States.
Dr. Larry Grayson, chair and professor of mining engineering at UMR and director of UMR's Western U.S. Mining Safety and Health Training and Translation Center, is an expert on coal mining and mine safety, and has extensive knowledge of China's mining industry. Likewise, Dr. Jerry Tien, associate professor of mining engineering, also is knowledgeable of China's mining industry, having served as a consultant to the mining industry in China.
"It appears this latest disaster in China was caused by a small earthquake that triggered a series of unfortunate events," says Tien.
Tien and Grayson are currently working on building health- and safety-related relationship in China. "Between the two of us, we have some very well thought out ideas about what may be done to create a new health and safety emphasis over there," says Grayson.
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