Federal report released in fatality at Lone Star plant

The Lone Star Industries maintenance mechanic who was killed Monday in an industrial accident was attempting to help restart a bucket elevator when an oil-filled drive coupling exploded and fragments of the coupling struck him in the chest.

That's according to a preliminary report released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration.

The one-page report says that Robert. St. Cin, 41, of Oran, Mo., was helping to restart a kiln feed elevator -- commonly known as a bucket elevator -- that had been overloaded.

"After the spillage was cleared, the start switch was jogged to see if the material would flow properly," said the report. "The oil-filled drive coupling exploded and fragments of the coupling struck the victim."

Federal officials backtracked from the wording of the report, however, saying that it should have said that the feed elevator "may have been overloaded."

"We have not reached any conclusion in that area," said Kathy Snider, with MSHA in Arlington, Va. "We just don't want to leave an impression that things are more definite than they are. This is a preliminary report that can change any day as new information is learned."

'Several inaccuracies'

Barbara Sinclair, a Lone Star spokeswoman, said she had shown the report to the investigators on site, who told her that there were "several inaccuracies" in the report.

"We're not going to comment on a report that's inaccurate," she said.

The report did not comment on how or why the coupling blew up.

Bucket elevators at Lone Star carry clinkers -- small walnut-sized pebbles ground to make concrete -- to kilns. The coupling acts as a shock absorber when the kiln feed elevators, which carry tons of material, are started.

The coupling at Lone Star was manufactured by Voith Coupling, a German-based company that develops and manufactures hydrodynamic power transmission products, including constant fill and fill-controlled fluid couplings for industrial, marine and mobile applications.

The report has the accident classified as an "exploding vessel under pressure."

The report said that the accident investigator is Ricky J. Horn, who is from the agency's Rolla, Mo., field office.

Calls to St. Cin's family went unreturned.

smoyers@semissourian.com

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