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Rock burst
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A rock burst is a spontaneous, violent failure of rock that can occur in high-stress mines. Although mines may experience many mining-related seismic events, only the tremors associated with damage to accessible mine workings are classified as rock bursts.[1] The opening of mine workings relieves neighboring rocks of tremendous pressure, which can cause the rock to fail explosively or trigger abrupt movement in nearby geological structures. Rock bursts are a serious hazard; in South Africa, they kill roughly 20 miners each year.[2][3]
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