#3: 229 MSHA citations
Coal
Price,
Floyd County,
KY
·
Abandoned and Sealed
MSHA Mine ID: 1519347
#3 has $51K in proposed MSHA penalties and $45K outstanding across 5 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.
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- Fatalities
- 0
- Total incidents
- 1
- Years on record
- 2009
- Latest incident
- May 2009
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2009
93
significant & substantial
$51,128
proposed penalties
12% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $45,167 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2008
19.6
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.
229 citations across 1,167 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
#3 has $51K in proposed MSHA penalties and $45K outstanding across 5 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.
215 assessments are final orders; 5 contested dockets.
Of $24K in penalties contested before the Commission, $13K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2010-04-22.
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.
43.3%
significant & substantial
8.8%
high negligence or reckless
43.7%
reasonably likely or greater
12.1%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.5% none, 1.4% low, 89.3% moderate, 8.4% high, 0.5% reckless.
Source: MSHA violations gravity and negligence coding, updated weekly.
When citations were contested
ⓘ
Contesting a citation before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission is a lawful right. These figures state the public outcomes of that process, from MSHA's Contested Violations file.
34
citations taken to the federal commission · 15% of citations on record
-
Stood as issued
21 · 62%
-
Vacated or withdrawn
13 · 38%
50%
S&S designation survived the contest
ⓘ
Counts a Significant & Substantial citation as surviving when a settlement or judge's decision kept the designation, or the contest was dismissed or defaulted so the citation stands as issued. Vacated and withdrawn citations, and settlements that removed the designation, count against.
of 18 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
46%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$24K proposed, $13K after decisions · industry: 39%
Source: MSHA Contested Violations file (public record), updated weekly. A dismissed or defaulted contest leaves the citation standing as issued; a vacated or withdrawn citation is removed from the violation record. Latest contest filed 2010-07-12.
Contested penalties
ⓘ
A reduction or dismissal at the Commission is a lawful outcome of contesting a proposed penalty. Figures are the proposed amount and the amount upheld in the docket's decision.
Largest penalties this mine contested before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, with the outcome on record.
| Docket |
Decision |
Judge |
Year |
Proposed / upheld |
| KENT 2010-867 |
Withdrawal |
Tureck |
2011 |
$8K → $0 |
| KENT 2010-350 |
Default |
Lesnick |
2011 |
$6K → $6K |
| KENT 2010-1293 |
Default |
Lesnick |
2011 |
$4K → $4K |
| KENT 2010-1294 |
Default |
Lesnick |
2011 |
$3K → $3K |
| KENT 2010-868 |
Withdrawal |
Tureck |
2012 |
$3K → $0 |
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.
MSHA sampling at #3 shows 92% of 24 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: 2010-03-04, 16 years ago
18 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 6 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
- CUTTING MACHINE OPERATOR7
- SCOOP CAR OPERATOR6
- COAL DRILL OPERATOR3
Silica (quartz)
Last sampled: 2010-03-10, 16 years ago
Most-sampled occupations
- CUTTING MACHINE OPERATOR2
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: 2009-09-27, 16 years ago
Most-sampled occupations
- SCOOP CAR OPERATOR2
- COAL DRILL OPERATOR1
- CUTTING MACHINE OPERATOR1
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 |
| 2010 |
75% |
4 |
| 2009 |
95% |
20 |
Silica (quartz) by year
| Year |
silica avg (%) |
samples |
| 2010 |
3.5 |
1 |
| 2009 |
5.7 |
1 |
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, 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) |
| 2010 |
14 |
10,724 |
| 2009 |
11 |
27,473 |
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.
#3 sits in Floyd County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 4.4% 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.
Floyd County, Kentucky · Population 35,342
4.4%
Mining share of county employment
$41,582
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 |
| 2010 Q1 |
4,482 |
86 |
35 |
19187.9 |
| 2009 Q4 |
3,200 |
34 |
19 |
10625.0 |
| 2009 Q3 |
1,507 |
63 |
26 |
41804.9 |
| 2009 Q2 |
786 |
12 |
3 |
15267.2 |
| 2009 Q1 |
2,000 |
6 |
1 |
3000.0 |
No fatalities recorded at this mine.
Reportable incidents
1 on file
2009 · 1 incident
Inner Mountain Mining, Inc · Accident type, without injuries
An event of May 9 of 6" - 12" of rain after 8 days of rain caused a failure of diversion lines that were designed according to SMRAC Act of 1977 allowing water to enter the mine.