Steven Cain, 32, had just four months of mining experience on October 8, 2008 when the accident occurred.

He was crushed between the car and the coal rib while moving a high-voltage line from the path of a loaded rail car being pushed by a diesel locomotive along a side track.

The accident took place at Massey Energy’s Independence Coal Justice No. 1 operation.

“The locomotive operator's visibility was limited due to overhead electrical cables and water line that were hanging from the mine roof, and supplies that were positioned on the locomotive and the supply cars,” the agency noted in its report.

Cain was a contractor under local temporary employee company Mountaineer Labor Solutions.

MSHA said the accident was due not only to the lack of visibility, but also because the inexperienced worker had positioned himself in a hazardous area.

Furthermore, the workers in the area at the time failed to adequately communicate their positions and intentions with one another.

To rectify the observed lack of training that the agency felt contributed to Cain’s death, MSHA ordered the operator to develop and implement a training plan to ensure all individuals being trained on new jobs would be safe.

A qualified trainer will also provide education on proper communications when working near rail cars and locomotives.

Additionally, MSHA ordered the operator to conduct training on general loading and supply handling as well as communication between motor operators and those assisting with such tasks.

Justice No. 1, a longwall operation which also employs room and pillar mining, has a staff of 160 with 153 working underground producing an average 16,475 raw tons daily.

The mine’s non-fatal days lost (NFDL) injury incidence rate in 2008 was 3.6, compared with the national rate of 4.2.