ST. LOUIS, Sept. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Peabody Energy teams earned four of the seven national championship trophies at the U.S. Department of Labor's National Mine Rescue, First Aid, Bench and Preshift Competition in Nashville, Tenn. The bi-annual competition tests the skills of mine rescue and first aid teams in simulated emergencies and enables employees to hone their safety preparedness skills. Nearly 60 teams from 12 states competed, and multiple Peabody teams participated. "We're proud of our leadership in safety readiness, which is core to our commitment to achieving world-class safety results," said Eric Ford, Peabody's Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. "These honors speak volumes about the caliber of our people and our constant attention to best practices." Peabody's Southern Appalachia Operations team won first place overall in the combination mine rescue/first aid competition and first place in the mine rescue category, outperforming far more experienced competitors. The company's Federal No. 2 team from Northern Appalachia took first place in the first aid competition, and Electrician Chuck Harvey of the Twentymile Mine in Colorado won the national BG-4 Benchman competition. Peabody's state and national award-winners include: National Mine Rescue Awards Combination Mine Rescue/First Aid Southern Appalachia, 1st Place Mine Rescue Southern Appalachia, 1st Place First Aid Federal No. 2, 1st Place Southern Appalachia, 3rd Place Benchman BG-4 Chuck Harvey, Twentymile Mine, 1st Place Mark Beauchamp, Twentymile Mine, 3rd Place 1st Place State Awards West Virginia Combination Mine Rescue/First Southern Appalachia Aid Operations Team Illinois Mine Rescue Willow Lake Mine Team Kentucky Biomarine Mark Lloyd, Bluegrass Team West Virginia Mine Rescue Southern Appalachia Operations Team West Virginia Benchman BG-174A Harry McGinnis, Federal No. 2 Team West Virginia First Aid Federal No. 2 Team Peabody Energy is the world's largest private-sector coal company, with 2006 sales of 248 million tons of coal and $5.3 billion in revenues. Its coal products fuel approximately 10 percent of all U.S. electricity generation and more than 2 percent of worldwide electricity. CONTACT Derrell Carter (314) 342-7667 DATASOURCE: Peabody Energy CONTACT: Derrell Carter of Peabody Energy, +1-314-342-7667 Web site: http://www.peabodyenergy.com/

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