Man Dies After Fall at Ohio County Mine in Benwood | News, Sports, Jobs

BENWOOD — A 44-year-old man died after an apparent fall at the Ohio County Mine on Friday morning.

Benwood Police Chief Frank Longwell said Jeffrey A. Phillips, a subcontractor identified in a release from the office of Gov. Jim Justice, was not wearing his body harness before he slipped off a belt line at the Benwood mine around 11:30 a.m. He died at the scene after falling about 30 feet, Longwell said.

The mine was not functional at the time of the accident, as it was down for maintenance.

“The mine’s on an outage. They’re doing a huge maintenance project, so the mine wasn’t functioning at the time of the accident,” Longwell said.

Longwell said Phillips lived in the local area.

Benwood and Moundsville’s fire departments assisted in the recovery. An investigation is being conducted by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the West Virginia Office of Miners’ Health Safety and Training.

St. Clairsville-based American Consolidated Natural Resources, the mine’s owner, did not immediately respond to a message left Friday seeking comment.