Lassing mining disaster

The mining disaster Lassing occurred in the morning of the 17th July 1998. Misfortune in the top Irish community Lassing in which ten people lost their lives, was the largest of its kind in Austria since 1945.

Geological and historical background

In Lassing is the largest known karbonatgebundene talc deposit in the Eastern Alps. Geologically, it belongs to the northern greywacke zone of Upper Styria. The deposit comprises two plots, the North and South Field, of which the southern area has no connection to the terrain surface. It is covered by about 60 m thick unconsolidated rocks.

The Lassinger Talk discovered in 1891 by a local landowner Krennmoar in construction work, which also secured the mineral rights. 1901 the company started Bischetsrieder & Gielow of underground production. Mid-1920s rested the promotion due to bankruptcy of the owner several years. In 1939 she was acquired by the family Talkumwerke Naintsch. In 1988, the mine into the possession of the Rio Tinto Group. In the 1990s the mine with its affiliated processing facilities produced approximately 30,000 tonnes of talc per year. At the time of the accident 34 people were employed in the undertaking, including 8 in underground mining.

Until the late 1970s, the North Field was built in caving, then there was a shift of the degradation in the southern area. Here, the extraction was carried out in room-and using lean concrete offset. The southern area was opened up by the 1978-80 sunk 204 m deep Renée bay. From the bay from the deposit was developed by ten soles.

Course

On 17 July 1998, the ceiling of an illegally mined sole broke. Water penetrated and caused a mud intrusion into the mine. On the surface, this was evidenced when a house in the district of moss, under which there was the mine collapse or slowly began to sink into the so-called Ping for. Through a deeper and growing crater gradually a total of 2 homes were destroyed and 18 homes damaged. After the accident, some of the houses were demolished in the neighborhood.

At this time, 34 people worked at the Naintscher mineral works, among them Georg Hainzl, which was probably already spilled during the first mud intrusion into a snack chamber.

Initially, there was telephone contact for this 24 -year-old miner, but which broke off. A rescue party of nine miners and a geologist traveled into the mountains on the same day. As by 22 clock of the second mud intrusion let implode the pit, which began " Horror in slow motion". The crater grew, the lights went out, lampposts were wrong. In addition, the rescue team was missing.

Soon it was said that there was no salvation for the eleven victims. Special drills from Germany were canceled by the plant management again. The rescue operations were sluggish. Outside help was unwanted. Bohrleiter was the technician Leopold Abraham OMV.

But then this happened "Miracle of Lassing ": The first spilled Bergmann Georg Hainzl was rescued after ten days in amazingly good health. This was the German drilling company Angers sons of hessian Lichtenau, which had previously worked with OMV and had a matching drill available which was suitable in contrast to the OMV equipment for large diameter and drilling depths rather flat. After the call with the order the company Angers reaching sons around 22:00 clock for rescue, it took only five hours until the drilling crew marched out with the required device in the direction of Austria. With the help of logistics and other plant parts of OMV, the hole could be drilled. The OMV specially made ​​to measure pressure chamber was not required, as in the survival chamber of Georg Hainzl no overpressure was what could be but is only determined after the bore. In the construction of this pressure chamber and the subsequent Lower Austrian regional fire commander Josef Buchta was heavily involved.

The ten men of the rescue team, however, remained in the mountain and were declared dead. In 2000, the search was discontinued after their corpses.

End of talc mining

The mine disaster marked the end of the talc mining after about 100 years. The mine was closed, the mill was sold to the Paltentaler Holding in Rottenmann 2007. The Naintscher Mineralwerke paid until 2003, some 30 million euros in rescue costs and compensation for survivors and rescued George Hainzl. There were also restoration costs for 20 destroyed or damaged homes and compensation for the impairment of property and real estate. On the former Pinge in which sank the houses, now houses a memorial to the buried ten miners.

Consequences for the Austrian mining

In Austria the lessons of Lassing led to profound changes in the mining trade, the rescue technology and information policy. This was followed by legal reforms in 1999, 2002 and 2004. Anachronistic mountain captaincy of Leoben, which was responsible in the case Lassing, was dissolved. Part of her duties took over the mining authorities newly created. Moreover, had the great mine rescue of the nationalized companies, which for decades the neighboring small businesses served, but gradually disappeared, are brought into new forms. At the operational level, a mine rescue was set up, which is coordinated by the Chamber of Commerce.

As there was no organized psychological support at this time for victims and their families, took them to the priest of the place. Only the Governor Waltraud Klasnic wife, who had traveled quickly to the scene of the accident, took care of those. Therefore, the Styrian crisis intervention team was formed later from her, which cares for victims of accidents, disasters, etc.. Your former use in Lassing she owed the reputation as so-called mother country.

Criticism

As a consequence, critique of both the mining methods of the company and to the bailouts was loud.

The company should have its tunnels illegally propelled up under built-up areas and too close to the surface. Thus there were no current plans so that the rescue work often had to justify only on statements of miners in the wake of the disaster.

Compared with the public the ten miners were again sent into the bay to rescue Hainzl. According internals but they should protect the mine to break down later on can.

The former economy minister Farnleitner was accused of having too long rejected immediately offered foreign aid.

Even under pressure from the media, the rescue operations were continued. You should, in the opinion of the professionals who perceived no chance of survival, are already set earlier.