Freeport investigating electrical incident at Safford Operations

“A contractor employee suffered injuries from a suspected arc flash incident that occurred Thursday, Dec. 19, at the Safford mine,” said FMI Communications Vice President Linda Hayes. “The contractor was treated at the scene and transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. We are investigating the cause of the incident and will make any necessary changes to prevent similar incidents.”

The mine has run mostly without serious medical incidents, however there was a fatality in the early operation of the mine in September 2007 in which electrical contractor Gilbert Guerra, 46, died from injuries sustained when he contacted an electrical fuse and gear switch handle. A report released by the Mine Safety & Health Administration listed the mine’s policies regarding the electrical circuits as inadequate due to not ensuring the circuit was not live before anyone performed work on it.