43 JULY 2024 WorldWide Drilling Resource® Another Win for West Virginia University Adapted from Information by West Virgina University (WVU) The 2024 Intercollegiate Mine Emergency Response Competition was hosted by Britannia Mine Museum and the University of British Columbia in Squamish, Canada. This year, the competition included five teams from the United States and Canada, and was judged by company-employed mine rescue team members and various professionals in specific skill sets. Throughout the competition, teams were challenged to compete in five categories. The first and second categories, which challenged teams to respond to an earthquake accident, were aid/mass casualty and ropes event. The goal was to rescue nine miners with injuries ranging from minor to life threatening in the most efficient manner, while maintaining proper treatment of the patients. Utilizing rope rescue techniques to retrieve one injured miner, the team had to safely lower a team member 20 feet to a different floor, treat the miner, and raise back to safety. “The mass casualty challenge proved to be difficult due to the lack of knowledge of what happened and not knowing the condition of the people until you’re in there and begin assessing them,” said Joshua Riffle, a senior mining and civil engineer dual major from Buckhannon, and team leader. The next two categories were the BG-4 bench and firefighting. These skills competitions measured the abilities of individuals and team members to troubleshoot issues with types of breathing apparatuses, including broken or bugged equipment. With the help of Britannia Beach Fire Department, they had to control a simulated fire. The last event was an underground mine rescue exercise where students had to compete to search for an unknown amount of unaccounted for miners. Mine rescue teams had to apply their training to respond effectively in the emergency to save those in distress. Placing first in four out of five categories, WVU Mine Rescue Team from the Statler College, beat out the competition to win first place and become the overall champions. “This team will always hold a special place in the WVU Mine Rescue history books,” Joshua Brady director of the Department of Mining and Industrial Extension at Statler College explained. “You have the awesome group who started the team back in 2013, the long run of consecutive wins, and this group traveling out of the country for the first time.” Student organizations and competition teams play a crucial role in shaping the comprehensive experience of every student within Statler College. The acquisition of real-world skills attracts employers and provides the foundation for our students to be successful in their careers. “Being on the mine rescue team has most definitely prepared me for my future career in mining,” Riffle said. “I plan to join a mine rescue team when I graduate and start my job. For members of the team that won’t be part of a team after competing at the collegiate level, it still prepares them in case of an emergency. The work ethic and commitment that this team embodies will carry over to our future careers and make us better at what we do.” Photo by Matthew Bisset courtesy of University of British Columbia. MIN
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