Minecraft wiki entry for Things_not_to_do, associated text: This is not quite so obvious, but if the player mines the blocks directly in front of them while being close to the block, several negative things could happen. The player could walk into a ravine, walk straight into a monster spawner, or even worse, have lava flow onto them. The player should use ambiance noise to their advantage. If the player hears mobs, lava, or water, they should proceed with caution. Subtitles may be used to highlight such sounds if the player cannot turn the game volume up high. One possible mining technique to fix this may be mining two blocks forward at eye level, then digging out for feet. Do this twice and almost all chances of lava or water flowing in can be noticed before they harm you.