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Richard Piatt ReportingCoal mine disasters in Utah are distant memories for most people. But for mining communities like Price, preparing for the worst is a part of life. Practicing search and rescue skills in the mine can be as important as their job is.
It's an obstacle course loaded with the unique hazards of a coal mine -- bad air, an unsafe roof, structural challenges. In real life, it's all hundreds of feet below ground. But even here, the practice is an intense exercise because the stakes could be life or death.
Brad Timothy, Energy West Mine Rescue: "We feel like if the mines around us aren't competing, they don't have the edge, and if they have an explosion at their mine, they will be lacking."
It's been more than 20 years since 27 people died at the Wilberg mine in Emery county. More recently, a fire at the Willow Creek mine claimed two miners and injured several more deep under ground. In both cases the deadly and hidden dangers of invisible gasses proved fatal.
That's why today gas detection devices make a big difference in rescues. So do modern radios. But there are still rescue techniques that have not changed.
Allyn Davis, Mine Safety and Health Administration: "The way they progress through the mine, the fact that they always work laterally as they work ahead so that they never pass a hazard that could be behind them."
There's no question this exercise requires a certain amount of imagination to simulate an actual mine disaster. But the reality is this is the only opportunity these teams have to recreate that disaster, so they can be prepared.
Of all the things that are unique about miners, the camaraderie is unmistakable, which is why, in this competition, no one wants a team to lose.
These kinds of mine safety competitions are nothing new. In fact, they've been going on since 1911, one of the first efforts to organize safety in a workplace.
