Alpha Natural Resources Affiliated Mine Rescue Team Wins National Competition
ABINGDON, Va., Oct. 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Alpha Natural Resources
, one of the nation's leading coal suppliers, is pleased to announce the results of the National Mine Rescue Competition held in Columbus, Ohio. The Black Mountain White Team from Benham, Ky. won the overall team competition. The team captain is Philip Muncy. Team members include the following: Roger Gilliam; Tim Kiser; Joe Lefevers; Tony Lloyd; David Patterson; Donnie Thomas; and Ronnie Biggerstaff, Trainer.Alpha placed three affiliated teams in the top ten and seven in the top twenty-five for the overall competition. The order of finish for Alpha-affiliated teams is listed below:
1--Black Mountain White Team;
4--Rockspring Development, Inc. Gold Team;
6--Black Mountain Blue Team;
11--Southern West Virginia Team;
18--Kingston Resources, Inc. White Team;
21--Emerald Coal Resources, L.P. Blue Team; and
22--Cumberland Coal Resources, L.P. JC Team.
The Black Mountain White Team received an award from the state of Kentucky for finishing with the best score among the teams competing from Kentucky. Similarly, the Emerald Coal Resources, LP Blue Team received the Pennsylvania top-team award.
More than 100 teams from across the country competed in the event, which also included team competition in 'First Aid' and individual competition in 'Bench' and 'Preshift.' Alpha's Southern West Virginia team finished fifth out of the 44 teams that participated in the First Aid competition and fourth in the 'Combination' competition where Mine Rescue and First Aid scores are added together to get a combined score.
For the individual events, Daniel 'Speedy' Bragg, of the Kingston Resources, Inc. White Team finished first and John Helmick, a member of the Cumberland Coal Resources, Inc. JC Team, finished second in the Draeger BG 4 unit Bench competition. Bench competition is an individual timed event testing the contestant's knowledge of a breathing apparatus.
Three Alpha-affiliated benchman finished with the best score in their state with Bragg receiving the W.Va. award, Helmick the Pennsylvania award and Tony Lloyd, from the Black Mountain White Team, winning the Kentucky first-place award.
Jason Grasha, a member of the Cumberland Coal Resources, Inc. JC Team finished eleventh in the Preshift contest and first among the Pennsylvania pre-shift competitors. Preshift competition tests knowledge and skills in evaluating a work area, including identifying and correcting potential hazards.
'We are very proud not only of how the 19 Alpha-affiliated teams performed for this important event, but also their dedication and professionalism in volunteering and training for a difficult job, said Kurt Kost, president of Alpha Natural Resources. 'They take their jobs as mine rescue volunteers very seriously, and their hard work paid off.'
About Alpha Natural Resources
Alpha Natural Resources is one of America's premier coal suppliers with affiliate coal production capacity of greater than 120 million tons a year. Alpha is the nation's leading supplier and exporter of metallurgical coal used in the steel-making process and is a major supplier of thermal coal to electric utilities and manufacturing industries across the country. The company, through its affiliates, employs approximately 14,000 people and operates more than 150 mines and 40 coal preparation facilities in Appalachia and the Powder River Basin. More information about Alpha can be found on the Company's Web site at www.alphanr.com.
Photographs Available Upon Request
Alpha Natural Resources
CONTACT: Rick Nida of Alpha Natural Resources, 1-276-739-5304,
rnida@alphanr.com
Web site: http://www.alphanr.com/
