In a now-demolished farm house in Iowa I taught the older grandsons to make pasta carbonera. It is easy: while pasta (any type) boils in hot water, in a pan fry bacon and onion; throw the boiled pasta into the pan; break in a few eggs; mix the whole until the eggs are cooked; eat with wine (adults) or soda (kids).
This was the lunch food of Italian underground miners. It was probably the high point of the day, as it was the high-point meal for five boys and one girl in that cold, old farm-house in Iowa.
Recently an Australian journalist asked me about the grubbiest job in mining. I replied: front-face, underground miners. Just like those Italians who ate pasta carbonera.
The dark side of mining, and there is one, is the hard, grubby, dangerous work in deep underground mines drilling, blasting, mucking, and moving ore-laden rock.
They are called mining laborers, or labourers, depending on your spelling preference. In the USA and Canada they earn between fifteen and thirty dollars and hour. Much less in Chile, South Africa, and China. And they die regularly. My paternal grandfather was one and he died in a rock-burst before I was born.
The fact is that while we write about and revel in tales of junior mining exploration undertaken from luxury offices, the reality is that rock has to be broken and moved to liberate the gold and silver that make the money that makes luxury offices in high-rise towers possible.
Journalists and blogger seldom write of this dark side of mining. We never go below to do what they do; we never deign to don water-proof gear, and advance to the raw rock-face. Like those miners in Chile who got caught and trapped and rescued—a miracle.
It matters not whether you are at the mining face in Chile, Diavik, Ekati, a coal mine inVirginia, or a coal mine in China. It is the same: descend the shaft, walk to the face, and in the dark, drill holes, push in explosive, retreat for the blast, and go back to muck out the broken rock and ore.
We can hardly imagine this dark, damp, and dangerous existence. We wonder what sort of men do this. Maybe, like my grandfathers, they are simply men desperate to make a few dollars to support family. They have no education and no skills. This is the only way to make money. Toil and travail is their lot. A brute patience and simple endurance. It breeds a comrade, solidarity, a union spirit, and a disdain for the manager, engineer, and money-maker. They eat pasta, sandwiches, buns, fahitas, welch pies, and any other high-carbohydrate food. Screw the organic and vegetables—that is for the effete.
They live blackened by coal, dust, and oil. They die of lungs clogged by fine quartz particles. They smoke for the relief and care not for the consequences–for smoking in nothing by comparison with the fine dust of the deep mine front face.
I challenge somebody to write in detail and from personal knowledge about these men (for this is not women’s work) and to go below in mines across the globe and document the truth of this dark, hard side of mining. I volunteer if somebody will provide the finance.
And if nobody does, then this piece is all I can offer to their honor. For the rest, let us not forget them in glorifying the other fun parts of mining and making money.
There was a series on Discovery called “Coal” that showed underground mining conditions. Kind of a mining version of “Deadliest Catch”.
I watched an episode of that “Coal” show. Underfunded US operation that couldn’t afford a generator big enough to power the continuous miner properly!
I mined quite a lot of coal in my younger days but fortunately the mines were always able to afford half decent equipment.
In 1966 I was Overman in charge of the longest powered support shearer face in Europe at Manor Powis Mine in Scotland. We ran into two small faults almost parallel to the face and then the fun started – water pouring in, running sand trying to bury everything, falls of ground. We lost a truckload of steel girders nearly every day and it was pure misery for five months. In the old days before there was expensive machinery you could simply abandon a mining area that was troublesome – because of the high capital investment we had to stay and fight. I lost seven big longwall powered supports one night.
I am surprised that you say that there is no difference between the countries listed. There is a big difference between mines in China and Canada, although they are both dark and dirty. I think that you are contributing to the misinformation for the general public with this post, Jack.
Allan: Normally I refrain from replying to a comment, but let me reply this time. I did not intend to say or imply that conditions are the same in all countries. I know better than that. So forgive this “sloppy” writing. Maybe it is the result of one too many brandies while typing, or a particularly beguiling tune on the radio. Jack
Great post. Think I’ll stick with the mobile office job.
Here in Alaska during the gold rush of the early 20th century, most of the placer miners worked underground, following drifting paystreaks. Their world was lit only by candlelight, and many were injured or killed from methane explosions.
A while ago, somebody went back to the earliest editions of the Fairbanks News-Miner, our local newspaper in Fairbanks, AK, and re-counted the myriad ways of being injured or killed at these mines. Lots of terse details of windlass buckets falling on heads, or pick axes falling on heads. Thaw points were a hazard also (the gravel containing the gold was frozen) and many were burned or scalded.
It was very interesting reading. I think many authors have written about this, from coal mining in Europe and North America, to silver miners in Bolivia where they worship the devil Tio underground, but pray to God above ground. To many, it’s just a job. And I’m glad I’m not one forced to go mine ungerground to make my living.
I do know that in Nevada, some of the underground miners are women, at least the truck drivers, along with a few scattered women as underground mining engineers or geologists — and also in Australia (1988) (2011). And I know that in 1973, I was not allowed underground in an east coast U.S. mine unless all the miners (men) were above ground.
Are you kidding me?… “for this is not women’s work”.
It’s obvious you haven’t spent much time at face (in the last two decades, anyways). Back in 1996 I listened to miners from an operation at the Hemlo gold camp BRAG to their colleagues at a neighbouring mine about the quality of their female miners. At the operation where I am currently employed, about 7-10% of the underground miners are women. The women have tendency to look after their equipment with a gentler hand, and report incidents more readily. We also have female geologists and mine engineers.
The mechanization of mining, at least in Canada, means that there are fewer and fewer physical constraints that limit women. Even when those constraints exist, women are very creative about finding ways around it – necessity is the mother of invention after all.
Your “dark, damp, and dangerous existence” is actually very safe, and the safety standards go up continually.