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EAST CARBON, Utah (AP) -- A Utah coal mine says it has been forced to shut down major operations in a dispute with federal regulators.
The West Ridge mine near Price was operating a longwall mining machine by remote control in the interest of safety but says regulators asked it to stop, disassemble the machinery and skip a section of the coal panel.
UtahAmerican Energy Inc., a subsidiary of Ohio-based Murray Energy Corp., says in a news release it would be safer to work the equipment in place than to move the machine. The company says it had to throw miners out of work.
The company says the order by the Mine Safety and Health Administration would jeopardize miners' lives. It complains a senior agency official who has no experience with western U.S. mining ordered the decision based on the wrong assessments of MSHA inspectors.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
