3/18/2003

Driver hit, killed by runaway coal truck

HAZARD, Ky. (AP) -- A coal truck driver was killed when the vehicle rolled out of control backward at a strip mine in Perry County, state regulators said Tuesday.

William Hollins, 48, of Viper, apparently jumped from the 18-wheel rig Monday as it rolled backward down the haulage road from Starfire Mining Co.'s West Lick Mine, according to a statement from the Department of Mines and Minerals.

Hollins' body was found on the roadway. Investigators theorized the truck struck him or rolled over him, but the investigation is not complete, the statement said.

The Perry County coroner pronounced Hollins dead at 7:28 p.m., the statement said. Hollins' death was the state's second mine fatality of 2003.