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#7: 63 MSHA citations Coal

J&R Coal Inc. · Underground
Controlled by Roger N Bentley
Dean, Letcher County, KY  ·  Abandoned and Sealed
MSHA Mine ID: 1518776

#7 has $154K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 2 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
3
Years on record
2005
Latest incident
Sep 2005
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2004
63
citations
39
significant & substantial
$153,908
proposed penalties
$110,608
paid to date
72% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $43,300 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
See J&R Coal Inc.'s full MSHA compliance history →
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2004
13
inspections on record
491
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: 491 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

#7 has $154K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 2 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.
$154K
proposed penalties
$111K
current assessed
$111K
paid to date
$0
outstanding
62 assessments are final orders; 2 contested dockets.
Of $148K in penalties contested before the Commission, $105K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2005-09-20.
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.
62.9%
significant & substantial
11.3%
high negligence or reckless
62.9%
reasonably likely or greater
17.7%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 6.5% low, 82.3% moderate, 11.3% high, 0.0% 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.
10 citations taken to the federal commission · 16% of citations on record
  • Settled 10 · 100%
100%
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 10 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
31%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$160K proposed, $111K 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 2006-10-20.
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 2007-84 Settlement Weisberger 2007 $139K → $99K
KENT 2006-235 Settlement Weisberger 2007 $9K → $6K
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at #7 shows 79% of 62 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: 2005-09-08, 20 years ago
79%
within 1.5 mg/m3
62
samples
5.62
dust max (mg/m3)
22 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 40 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • CUTTING MACHINE OPERATOR22
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR16
  • SCOOP CAR OPERATOR9

Silica (quartz)

Last sampled: 2005-09-20, 20 years ago
9.4
silica avg (%)
2
samples
11.3
silica max (%)
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: 2005-09-08, 20 years ago
20%
over PEL
5
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • SCOOP CAR OPERATOR2
  • COAL DRILL OPERATOR1
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR1
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
2005 78% 41
2004 81% 21
Silica (quartz) by year
Year silica avg (%) samples
2005 11.3 1
2004 7.5 1
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.

#7 recorded 21.89 reportable injury cases per 100 full-time workers in 2005.

Injury rate, 2005
ⓘ This rate is reportable injury cases per 100 full-time-equivalent workers per year, computed as 200,000 times cases divided by MSHA operator-reported employee-hours. Cases are injuries MSHA graded degree 01 through 07; accident-only events that hurt no one are excluded, and so are contractor injuries, whose hours do not attach to a single mine. Rates begin in 2000, when quarterly employment reporting starts, and are withheld below 20,000 hours in a year.
21.89
total case rate
21.89
days-away rate
0.000
fatality rate
Above average. The US coal mining average was 5.11 and the all-US-mining average was 4.21 cases per 100 workers.
In Kentucky, coal mining averaged 5.46 cases per 100 workers that year.
Under 100,000 employee-hours were reported that year, so a single case moves the rate by two or more. Read the figure as approximate.
Source: injury cases from MSHA accident and injury records; employee-hours from MSHA quarterly employment reports. Rate is cases per 100 full-time-equivalent workers, operator employees only.
Ownership history
  1. J&R Coal Inc. 2004 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)
2008 0
2007 0
2006 0
2005 15 84,323
2004 7 5,425
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

#7 sits in Letcher County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 3.5% 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.
Letcher County, Kentucky · Population 21,146
3.5%
Mining share of county employment
$40,501
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
2008 Q2 0 0 0
2007 Q1 0 0 0
2006 Q4 0 0 0
2006 Q3 0 0 0
2006 Q2 0 0 0
2006 Q1 0 0 0
2005 Q4 720 0 0 0.0
2005 Q3 12,924 28 20 2166.5
Show 4 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2005 Q2 9,129 18 11 1971.7
2005 Q1 4,634 0 0 0.0
2004 Q4 4,263 7 1 1642.0
2004 Q3 2,103 10 7 4755.1
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

3 on file

2005 · 3 incidents

September 12, 2005 KY · Coal driller operator IGNITION OR EXPLOSION OF GAS OR DUST
J&R Coal Inc. · Contact with hot objects or substances

EE WAS DRILLING COAL WHEN METHANE IGNITED CAUSING AN EXPLOSION & BURNING EE ON FACE AND BOTH HANDS. EE WAS TAKEN TO WHITESBURG ARH THEN AIR LIFTED TO LEXINGTON KY.

June 16, 2005 KY · Coal roof bolter, rock bolter, pinner, mobile roof support operator (mrs) FALL OF ROOF OR BACK
J&R Coal Inc. · Struck by falling object

Employee was operating a roof bolter when a piece of draw rock fell on his left shoulder and neck approximately 3' x 18" x 6" dislocating his left shoulder.

February 25, 2005 KY · Coal roof bolter, rock bolter, pinner, mobile roof support operator (mrs) MACHINERY
J&R Coal Inc. · Caught in, under or between (Not Elsewhere Classified)

Employee was tramming bolter across section and the back of the bolter caught on roof