Mining Incidents
Search Operators Mines Alerts Research Controllers Fatalgrams About
English Español
← Back to search

#2: 24 MSHA citations Coal

Wise, Wise County, VA  ·  Temporarily Idled
MSHA Mine ID: 4407284

#2 has $3K in proposed MSHA penalties and $1K outstanding across 0 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

Watch this mine

Email me when a new MSHA incident is filed at #2.

Fatalities
0
Total incidents
0
Years on record
—
Latest incident
—
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2014
24
citations
3
significant & substantial
$2,676
proposed penalties
$1,251
paid to date
47% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $1,425 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
See Ambrose Branch Coal Company, Inc.'s full MSHA compliance history →
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2011
31
inspections on record
533
inspection hours
n/a
citations per 100 inspection hours
ⓘ This rate is recorded citations divided by MSHA inspection hours, per 100 hours. It reflects inspection effort, not mine size or production.
Rate withheld: 533 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

#2 has $3K in proposed MSHA penalties and $1K outstanding across 0 contested dockets.

Penalty disposition
ⓘ Differences between proposed and paid penalties reflect both settlements and conference reductions and amounts still owed. Outstanding is the balance currently owed.
$3K
proposed penalties
$3K
current assessed
$1K
paid to date
$1K
outstanding
20 assessments are final orders; 0 contested dockets.
As of the most recent assessment on 2024-09-13.
Source: MSHA assessed-violations and conference/litigation data, updated weekly.
Violation severity profile
ⓘ Shares are computed over citations that carry the MSHA gravity and negligence coding; a small share of records are uncoded.
15.0%
significant & substantial
30.0%
high negligence or reckless
15.0%
reasonably likely or greater
25.0%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 10.0% low, 60.0% moderate, 30.0% high, 0.0% reckless.
Source: MSHA violations gravity and negligence coding, updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at #2 shows 100% of 55 respirable coal dust samples met the 1.5 mg/m3 standard.

Health sampling
ⓘ A sample is a point in time compliance measurement, not an individual exposure history. These figures describe MSHA sampling records and do not establish causation or personal dose.

Respirable coal dust
ⓘ Respirable coal dust and silica figures cover coal facilities. Dust compliance is measured against the current 1.5 mg/m3 standard; samples predating the 2014 standard are included, so compliance rates are a coarse historical signal.

Last sampled: 2023-06-15, 3 years ago
100%
within 1.5 mg/m3
55
samples
0.89
dust max (mg/m3)
0
over MSHA ECV
ⓘ The excessive concentration value (ECV) is MSHA's own per-sample enforcement threshold, which builds in measurement uncertainty; a sample over its ECV can trigger a citation. The count covers only samples MSHA assigned an ECV.
34 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 21 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • BULLDOZER OPERATOR18
  • HIGHWALL DRILL OPERATOR16
  • REFUSE TRUCK DRIVER/BACKFILL TRUCK DRIVE9

Silica (quartz)

Last sampled: 2023-06-26, 3 years ago
6.2
silica avg (%)
6
samples
9.5
silica max (%)
Most-sampled occupations
  • BULLDOZER OPERATOR3
  • HIGHWALL DRILL OPERATOR3
See US coal mines ranked by silica in their dust samples.

Noise
ⓘ The share counts noise samples whose measured dose exceeded the 90 dBA permissible exposure limit. It describes the sampled workplace, not what reached the miner's ear: hearing conservation programs and the hearing protection worn during the shift are recorded separately and are not reflected here.

Last sampled: 2023-06-15, 3 years ago
0%
over PEL
19
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • BULLDOZER OPERATOR7
  • REFUSE TRUCK DRIVER/BACKFILL TRUCK DRIVE4
  • HIGHLIFT OPERATOR/FRONT END LOADER3
See US mines ranked by noise samples over the legal limit.
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.
Health sampling trend
ⓘ A sample is a point in time compliance measurement, not an individual exposure history. These figures describe MSHA sampling records and do not establish causation or personal dose.
Respirable coal dust by year
ⓘ Respirable coal dust and silica figures cover coal facilities. Dust compliance is measured against the current 1.5 mg/m3 standard; samples predating the 2014 standard are included, so compliance rates are a coarse historical signal.
Year within 1.5 mg/m3 samples
2023 100% 7
2019 100% 8
2018 100% 3
2017 100% 18
2016 100% 11
2015 100% 4
2014 100% 4
Silica (quartz) by year
Year silica avg (%) samples
2023 3.5 1
2019 6.9 2
2017 8.7 1
2016 5.4 1
2015 5.8 1
Noise by year
Year over PEL samples
2023 0% 5
2019 0% 6
2017 0% 4
2015 0% 4
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.
Ownership history
  1. Appalachian Contractors, Inc. 2011 to 2015
  2. Big D Enterprises, Inc 2015 to 2022
  3. Ridgetop Development LLC 2018 to 2020
  4. Ambrose Branch Coal Company, Inc. 2022 to present
Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.
Workforce and production
ⓘ Coal production is reported quarterly and lags the current period; the most recent quarters may be incomplete.
Year Employees Coal produced (tons)
2024 0
2023 6 2,182
2020 0
2019 8 27,164
2018 1
2017 6 17,831
2016 6 16,166
2015 4 2,168
2014 9 36,703
2013 2 680
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

#2 sits in Wise County, Virginia, where the Census mining category is 5.9% of county employment.

Local economic context
ⓘ County figures come from the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey, 5-year pooled estimates, so the 2023 vintage covers 2019 through 2023. The Census category is 'mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction', which is broader than MSHA jurisdiction and includes oil and gas workers no mine employs. These figures describe the surrounding county, not this mine, and are not a factor in any specific incident.
Wise County, Virginia · Population 35,727
5.9%
Mining share of county employment
$50,740
Median household income
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 5-year estimates.
Quarterly safety rates
ⓘ Citations per million reported employee-hours. Rates begin in 2000, when MSHA's quarterly employment data starts; earlier incidents are counted but cannot be rate-adjusted. Quarters under 100,000 reported hours are greyed: too few hours for a stable rate.
Citations per million employee-hours, as reported to MSHA
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2024 Q3 0 2 0
2023 Q2 2,521 0 0 0.0
2020 Q1 0 0 0
2019 Q4 0 0 0
2019 Q3 0 0 0
2019 Q2 6,642 0 0 0.0
2019 Q1 13,082 2 0 152.9
2018 Q3 0 0 0
Show 15 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2018 Q2 0 0 0
2018 Q1 184 3 0 16304.3
2017 Q4 3,405 0 0 0.0
2017 Q3 3,420 3 2 877.2
2017 Q2 3,612 0 0 0.0
2017 Q1 3,640 2 0 549.5
2016 Q4 4,024 0 0 0.0
2016 Q3 3,504 0 0 0.0
2016 Q2 3,420 2 1 584.8
2016 Q1 2,980 0 0 0.0
2015 Q4 2,054 2 0 973.7
2014 Q3 0 0 0
2014 Q2 9,989 0 0 0.0
2014 Q1 9,989 1 0 100.1
2013 Q4 280 0 0 0.0

No reportable incidents on file.

MSHA has no recorded reportable accidents for this mine in the current dataset. New reports appear here within a week of being filed.