Miner Killed at Troubled Peabody Operation in Illinois

A miner has been killed in an equipment accident at a troubled Peabody Energy mine in southern Illinois, according to federal regulators.

Federal Mine Safety and Health Administration spokeswoman Amy Louviere says the victim was struck by a shuttle car used to haul coal underground. The victim was identified only as a section foreman.

St. Louis-based Peabody says the death is unacceptable. The mine is closed pending an investigation.

MSHA recently singled out Willow Lake as particularly dangerous. The agency has fined Peabody $230,000 for violations at the mine since late 2008.

The fatality is the 41st coal mining death in 2010. Most of the deaths occurred in an explosion at Massey Energy’s Upper Big Branch mine in southern West Virginia, where 29 men died April 5.