Arkansas § 11-7-304 - Mine openings and escapeways.

§ 11-7-304. Mine openings and escapeways.

Every underground mine shall have at least two (2) separate surface openings. Main slope and drift openings shall be separated by at least twenty-five feet (25') of natural ground in all mines opened after June 9, 1949. New shafts and partitions therein, made after June 9, 1949, shall be fireproof. Buntons and guides may be of wood. Mine openings at isolated locations, where there is danger of fire entering the mine, shall have adequate protection against surface fires entering the mine. Not more than twenty (20) persons shall be allowed at any one (1) time in the mine until a connection has been made between the two (2) mine openings, and work shall be prosecuted with reasonable diligence. When only one (1) opening is available, owing to final mining of pillars, not more than twenty (20) persons shall be allowed in the mine at any one (1) time. There shall be at least two (2) travelable passageways, to be designated as “escapeways”, from each working section to the surface, whether the mine openings are shafts, slopes, or drift. These shall be kept in safe condition for travel and reasonably free from standing water and other obstructions. One (1) of the designated escapeways may be the haulage road. One (1) of the escapeways must be ventilated with intake air. At mines now operating with only one (1) free passageway to the surface, immediate action shall be taken to provide a second passageway. Where the designated escapeways are shafts, they shall be equipped with hoist and cage or with travelable stairways or ladders. No shaft more than thirty feet (30') deep, sunk after June 9, 1949, shall be equipped with ladders. Stairways shall be of substantial construction, set at an angle not greater than forty-five degrees (45°) with the horizontal, and equipped on at least one (1) side with a suitable handrail. Landing platforms shall be at least two feet (2') wide and four feet (4') long and shall be railed properly. Ladders shall be anchored securely. Where ladders or stairways set at an angle greater than forty-five degrees (45°) are now installed, their use may be continued, provided that they are of substantial construction, with platforms at intervals of not more than thirty feet (30') and equipped with a handrail in the case of stairways. If a designated escapeway is a slope of not more than forty-five degrees (45°), it shall be equipped with a stairway or adequate walkway with cleats. If the slope is more than forty-five degrees (45°), stairways shall be installed. Direction signs shall be posted conspicuously to indicate manways and designated escapeways. Good housekeeping shall be practiced underground.