§ 74-24.7. Inspections and investigations. - North Carolina Statutes

§74‑24.7.  Inspections and investigations.

(a)        The Commissionerthrough the Director shall make as many inspections and investigations in mineseach year as are deemed necessary to effectively and accurately fulfill therequirements of:

(1)        Obtaining, utilizing,and disseminating information relating to health and safety conditions, thecauses of "accidents" and causes of illnesses and physicalimpairments originating in such mines,

(2)        Gatheringinformation with respect to the necessity for health and safety standards,

(3)        Determining whetheran imminent danger exists,

(4)        Determining whetheror not there is compliance with safety and health standards or with any notice,order, or decision issued under this Article.

(5)        In carrying out therequirements of (4) of this subsection, no advance notice of an inspectionshall be provided to any mine operator, official, miner, representative of theminers, or other person, except that the Commissioner or Director may authorizethe giving of advance notice only when such notice is essential to theeffectiveness of the inspection.

(b)        For the purpose ofmaking any inspection or investigation under this Article, the Commissioner orhis authorized representative shall have a right of entry to, upon, or throughany mine at reasonable times.

(c)        For the purpose ofmaking any investigation of any "accident" relating to safety andhealth in a mine, the Commissioner may, after notice, hold hearings, and mayissue subpoenas for the attendance and testimony of persons and the productionof relevant documents, and administer oaths in any investigation conducted byhim. In case of contumacy or refusal to obey a subpoena served upon any personunder this section, the general court of justice, superior court division, ofthe county in which such person is found or resides or transacts business, uponapplication by the Commissioner and after notice to such person, shall havejurisdiction to determine whether such person shall be punished as for contemptof court.

(d)        In the event of an"accident" occurring in a mine, the operator shall notify theCommissioner or the Director thereof at such time as may be required and shalltake appropriate measures to prevent the destruction of any evidence whichwould assist in investigating the cause or causes thereof. In the event of any"accident" occurring in a mine where rescue and recovery work isnecessary, the Commissioner through the Director shall take whatever action hedeems appropriate to protect the life of any person, and he may, if he deems itappropriate, supervise and direct the rescue and recovery activity in suchmine.

(e)        In the event of any"accident" occurring in a mine, the Commissioner through the Directormay issue such orders as he deems appropriate to insure the safety of anyperson in the mine, and the operator of such mine shall obtain the approval ofthe Commissioner or his authorized representative in consultation withappropriate federal representatives, when feasible, of any plan to recover anyperson in the mine or to recover the mine or to return affected areas of themine to normal.

(f)         Whenever any mineror representative of the miners has reasonable grounds to believe that aviolation of a safety or health standard exists, or that an imminent dangerexists, such miner or representative of the miners may request an inspection bygiving notice to the Commissioner or the Director of such violation or danger.Any such notice shall be reduced to writing, shall set forth with reasonableparticularity the grounds for the notice, and shall show the name of the miner,be signed by the miner or representative of the miners, and a copy shall beprovided the operator or his agent no later than at the time of inspection,except that, upon request of the person giving such notice, his name and thenames of individual miners referred to therein shall not appear in such copy.If, after receipt of such notification, the Commissioner finds that there arereasonable grounds to believe a violation may exist, a special inspection shallbe made as soon as practicable to determine if, in fact, such violation ordanger does exist under the provisions of this Article.

(g)        At the commencementof any inspection of a mine by the Commissioner or his authorizedrepresentative, under subsection (a)(3) or subsection (a)(4) of this section,the authorized representative of the miners at the mine at the time of suchinspection shall be given an opportunity to accompany the Commissioner or hisauthorized representative on such inspection, to inform the Commissioner or hisauthorized representative of conditions and practices in the mine, without lossor deduction in pay. Where there is no authorized representative of the miners,the Commissioner or his authorized representative shall have the right to consultwith a reasonable number of miners concerning matters of safety and health inthe work place. (1975, c. 206, s. 7.)