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Job Description

Place and detonate explosives to demolish structures or to loosen, remove, or displace earth, rock, or other materials. May perform specialized handling, storage, and accounting procedures. Includes seismograph shooters.

Job Details

The SOC (Standard Occupational Classification) code is 47-5031.00
The Mean Annual Wage in the U.S. is $ 54,580.00
The Mean Hourly Wage is $ 26.00
Currently, there are 6,310 people on this job

☝️ Information based on the reference occupation “Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters”.

Also Known As…

Tasks for “Skip Miner, Blasting”

Cut specified lengths of primacord and attach primers to cord ends.
Set up and operate short-wave radio or field telephone equipment to transmit and receive blast information.
Maintain inventory levels, ordering new supplies as necessary.
Clean, gauge, and lubricate gun ports.
Mark patterns, locations, and depths of charge holes for drilling, and issue drilling instructions.
Insert powder charges into chambers of sidewall sample-taking cylinders, and assemble cylinders, using special wrenches.
Place safety cones around blast areas to alert other workers of danger zones, and signal workers as necessary to ensure that they clear blast sites prior to explosions.
Insert, pack, and pour explosives, such as dynamite, ammonium nitrate, black powder, or slurries into blast holes; then shovel drill cuttings, admit water into boreholes, and tamp material to compact charges.
Lower perforating guns into wells, using hoists; then use measuring devices and instrument panels to position guns in correct positions for taking samples.
Lay primacord between rows of charged blast holes, and tie cord into main lines to form blast patterns.
Move and store inventories of explosives, loaded perforating guns, and other materials, according to established safety procedures.
Obtain samples of earth from sidewalls of well boreholes, using electrically exploding devices.
Set up and operate equipment such as hoists, jackhammers, or drills, in order to bore charge holes.
Assemble and position equipment, explosives, and blasting caps in holes at specified depths, or load perforating guns or torpedoes with explosives.
Verify detonation of charges by observing control panels, or by listening for the sounds of blasts.
Compile and keep gun and explosives records in compliance with local and federal laws.
Tie specified lengths of delaying fuses into patterns in order to time sequences of explosions.
Observe odometers, weight indicators, and instrument panels in trucks in order to position guns at predetermined points in wells.
Repair and service blasting, shooting, and automotive equipment, and electrical wiring and instruments, using hand tools.
Signal hoist operators to lower torpedoes or sample-taking guns into wells and to raise equipment for sampling from blast holes after detonation.
Insert waterproof sealers, bullets, and/or powder charges into guns, and screw gun ports back into place.
Place explosive charges in holes or other spots; then detonate explosives to demolish structures or to loosen, remove, or displace earth, rock, or other materials.
Drive trucks to transport explosives and blasting equipment to blasting sites.
Repair electrical instruments, using electricians' hand tools.
Connect gun chambers to electric detonating devices, and operate controls at panelboards, in order to detonate charges in guns or to ignite chemical charges.
Light fuses, drop detonating devices into wells or boreholes, or activate firing devices with plungers, dials, or buttons, in order to set off single or multiple blasts.
Measure depths of drilled blast holes, using weighted tape measures.
Examine blast areas to determine amounts and kinds of explosive charges needed and to ensure that safety laws are observed.
Connect electrical wire to primers, and cover charges or fill blast holes with clay, drill chips, sand, or other material.

Related Technology & Tools

Tongue and groove pliers
Safety harnesses
Hacksaws
Warning sirens
Hoisting equipment
Digital calculators
Wire loop pullers
Hard hats
Perforating capsule guns
Blasthole drills
Coated gloves
Pneumatic drilling equipment
Wood wedges
Avalaunchers
Protective safety glasses
Short period delay detonators
Explosive blasting caps
Wire cutting tools
Padded gloves
Harpoon retrievers
Protective respirators
Seismic activity recorders
Safety cones
Hole savers
Blasting cap crimpers
Stake flags
Overhead cranes
Explosives time delay fuses
Instantaneous electrical detonators
Explosives handling robots
Portable cranes
Test lamps
Fuse cutters
Fixed blade knives
Bore hole thermometers
Wire cleaning brushes
Weighted tape measures
Electronic shock tube initiators
Surface connector blocks
Transport trucks
Safety fuses
Insulated pliers
Hand chisels
Surveyors leveling rods
Temperature data loggers
Folding knives
Day boxes
Equipment dollies
Non-electric delay detonators
Crescent wrenches
Hand shears
Portable air compressors
Meggers
Rubber mallets
Longnose pliers
Resistance testers
Fuse testers
Detonating cords
Blasting machines
Millivoltmeters
Long period delay detonators
Remote blasting systems
Depth measurement gauges
Plastic plugs
Mobile radios
Personal computers
Portable signal generators
Digital multimeters
Blast hole tubing
Galvanometers
Spring scales
Laptop computers
Electricians' knives
Forklifts
Digital ohmmeters
Conduit bending tools
Digital micrometers
Discharge hoses
Grappling hooks
Digital ammeters
Remote firing devices
Phase rotation meters
Extension ladders
Wheeled wire dispensers
Vernier calipers
Loading poles
Dewatering pumps
Non-contact voltage testers
Short-wave radios
Wire strippers
Lowering hooks
Tractor-trailer trucks
Electrical circuit testers
Protective ear plugs
Ring gauges
Balance scales
Precision tweezers
Safety goggles
Torpedo levels
Digital voltmeters
Right angle prisms
Ammonium nitrate fuel oil ANFO loaders
Shock tube detonators
Plumb bobs
Hydraulic pressure gauges
Tie-down equipment
End cutting pliers
Explosives funnels
Pallet jacks
Perforating casing guns
Jackhammers
Flashing warning lights
Clinometers
Laser rangefinders
Digital wattmeters
Phillips head screwdrivers
Stakebed trucks
Tamping rods

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