Rail Link garners two safety awards from state of Wyoming

Genesee & Wyoming Inc. (GWI) yesterday announced its Rail Link Inc. subsidiary received the 2012 Wyoming Governor's Safety Award for Large Mine Contractors and the Wyoming State Mine Inspector Safety Award, both for the third consecutive year.

The governor's award is the highest honor given by the state of Wyoming for recognition of an employer's commitment to excellence in workplace safety and health, while the state mine inspector safety award recognizes Rail Link's perfect safety record in 2012.

Rail Link's coal-loading operations in the Powder River Basin (PRB) have not had a reportable injury since September 2011 and the region's employees so far have operated without an injury in 2013.

At mine sites, Rail Link employees receive empty, mile-long coal trains from the railroads, operate them slowly through the mine's loading stations, and then hand them back to the railroads in a non-stop cycle involving as many as 70 trains daily, GWI officials said in a press release. Rail Link employees loaded about 300 million tons of PRB coal last year, or about 30 percent of all U.S. coal produced.

"Our core purpose is to be the safest and most respected rail service provider in the world, and we are grateful that the state of Wyoming continues to recognize our efforts," said J. Bradley Ovitt, senior vice president of GWI's Mountain West Region.