A bill put before the West Virginia legislature on Monday aimed at improving a coal miner’s chances of surviving an accident was passed in one day at the urging of West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin.

The fast-tracked legislation was drafted over the weekend by Manchin's staff following last week’s two deaths at Aracoma Coal's Alma No. 1 mine at Melville.

The bill calls for mine officials to notify a 24-hour statewide hotline within 15 minutes of an accident, with failure to do so resulting in a fine of $US100,000. Manchin said the Sago and Aracoma mines waited too long to call for help, Reuters News reported.

It also requires oxygen caches to be placed throughout a mine and for a location device to be carried by miners to help rescuers find them in case of an accident. The bill also requires mines to install a lifeline with reflective markings that would direct miners to oxygen stations and possibly to continue out of the mine.

Once the governor signs the bill, coal companies in West Virginia will have to comply by the end of February.

Meanwhile in Kentucky Republican Brent Yonts introduced legislation last week in the General Assembly to increase the number of coal mine inspectors and require mandatory drug testing of miners.

A rival bill backed by the administration of Republican Governor Ernie Fletcher is expected to be submitted, according to Platts Commodity News.

On Monday a hearing was conducted by the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies of the Senate Appropriations Committee, to look at initiatives to make mines safer and improve response times to future disasters.

National Mining Association (NMA) Vice President for Safety and Health Bruce Watzman appeared on behalf of the industry and presented information on the industry’s achievements in reducing mining accidents and fatalities prior to the tragic events at the Sago mine.

Speaking at the hearing Watzman said since 1990, US mine injuries declined by 51% and fatalities by almost 67%. Last year was the safest ever recorded for both the nation's coal mines and West Virginia's coal mines.

"Through this hearing, the work of the new commission and the official investigations, we can learn how to do a better job, to do better what we've tried hard to do well," he said.

Watzman also described new mining safety initiatives to be launched by NMA (see related article).

Testifying at the same subcommittee hearing an International Coal Group executive said following the accident at the company’s Sago Mine ICG would work to improve mine safety.

"We will work on our own, and with others in the mining community, to improve technology, and we will continue to base our business decisions on worker safety as the first and most crucial consideration,” ICG chief executive officer Ben Hatfield said.

He said ICG was working closely with MSHA and the State of West Virginia to identify the cause of the January 2 accident, and would use all available resources to “get the answers that the families, friends and coworkers need and deserve."