Alpha Natural Resources' Mine Rescue Teams Take Top Honors at West Virginia Contest

BRISTOL, Va., May 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Alpha Natural Resources (NYSE: ANR), a leading U.S. coal supplier, is pleased to announce the results of the West Virginia Alliance Mine Rescue Skills Contest.

Fifty-six teams participated in the event held last week at the National Mine Health and Safety Academy near Beckley, W.Va. The contest was divided into two divisions. Mine rescue teams of Alpha-affiliated companies participated in the Division II competition, which is for teams with more than three years of experience. Alpha teams placed in the first seven spots in Division II overall, the first six spots in smoke and firefighting, and the first five spots in first aid and preliminaries, which includes gas testing, benching of the apparatus and a written test. Alpha teams finished 2^nd and 3^rd in the mine rescue field problem.

"Mine rescue teams go above and beyond the call of duty. They give their all whether in a contest or in a real-life incident. We are so proud of the work they do and congratulate them for a job well done," said Brian Keaton, assistant vice-president, safety and health.

Results of the competition are listed below:

Division II Overall

• 1^st Alpha Rocksprings Gold
• 2^nd Alpha Kingston White
• 3^rd Alpha Southern WV CRE
• 4^th Alpha Rocksprings Blue
• 5^th Alpha Brooks Run South
• 6^th Alpha Cumberland JC
• 7^th Alpha Maxxim Shared Blue

Division II Smoke/Firefighting

• 1^st  Alpha Kingston White
• 2^nd Alpha Rocksprings Gold
• 3^rd Alpha Rocksprings Blue
• 4^th Alpha Emerald Blue
• 5^th Alpha Cobra
• 6^th Alpha Maxxim Shared Blue

Division II First Aid/Preliminaries

• 1^st Alpha Rocksprings Gold
• 2^nd Alpha Southern WV CRE
• 3^rd Alpha Kingston White
• 4^th Alpha Cumberland JC
• 5^th Alpha Brooks Run South

Division II Mine Rescue Field

• 2^nd Alpha Rocksprings Gold
• 3^rd Alpha Maxxim Shared Blue

About Alpha Natural Resources

With $7.1 billion in total revenue in 2011, Alpha Natural Resources ranks as America's second-largest coal producer by revenue and third-largest by production. Alpha is the nation's largest supplier of metallurgical coal used in the steel-making process and is a major supplier of thermal coal to electric utilities and manufacturing industries. In 2011, the company had more than 200 customers on five continents. More information about Alpha can be found on the company's Web site at www.alphanr.com. 

SOURCE Alpha Natural Resources