A West Virginian coal miner is said to have fallen to his death this past Friday.

 

The death of 44-year-old Jeffrey A. Phillips is at least the third death already this year in the coal mining industry. The other deaths this month occurred in Indiana and Kentucky, according to the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration. Phillips is said to have worked for NextGen Industrial Services.

 

According to a statement from the governor’s office, Phillips fell while working above a beltline. The incident took place in the prep plant of an Ohio County Coal Company mine in the Marshall County Community of Benwood.

 

According to Benwood Police Chief Frank Longwell, the worker was not wearing a body harness and fell from a height of approximately 30-feet. The mine was not operating at the time as it was down for maintenance.