Details - Public Health Image Library(PHIL)

ID#:

9555

Caption:

From the 1950s or 1960s, and provided by the Center for Disease Control's (CDC), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), this historic image depicted a coal miner applying a handheld auger, to the wall of a mine shaft. Using a handheld device allowed the miner to be more selective in the excavation process, as well as to extract small ore samples for analytical purposes. Note that this miner was not wearing any protective facial breathing gear, like a filtered mask. In the small confines of a mine, airborne coal dust can emanate from almost anywhere in the shaft network, which made miners predisposed to the long-term negative health effects of this profession, including black lung disease, or coal-workers’ pneumoconiosis (CWP).

High Resolution:

Click here for hi-resolution image (4.19 MB)

Content Provider(s):

CDC/ Barbara Jenkins, NIOSH; Bureau of Mines, Dept. of Interior

Creation Date:

Photo Credit:

Links:

Categories:

CDC Organization