Mining Incidents

Connor Coal Company Inc No 1: 1,100 MSHA citations Coal

Connor Coal Company, Inc. · Underground
Controlled by Jeremy C Bryant
Beaver, Floyd County, KY  ·  Abandoned and Sealed
MSHA Mine ID: 1512908

Connor Coal Company Inc No 1 has $497K in proposed MSHA penalties and $472K 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 Connor Coal Company Inc No 1.

Fatalities
0
Total incidents
2
Years on record
2011–2013
Latest incident
Sep 2013
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2006
1,100
citations
342
significant & substantial
$496,555
proposed penalties
$24,148
paid to date
5% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $472,407 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2006
101
inspections on record
6,579
inspection hours
16.7
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.
1,100 citations across 6,579 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Connor Coal Company Inc No 1 has $497K in proposed MSHA penalties and $472K 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.
$497K
proposed penalties
$497K
current assessed
$24K
paid to date
$472K
outstanding
1,076 assessments are final orders; 0 contested dockets.
As of the most recent assessment on 2016-06-09.
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.
31.8%
significant & substantial
11.2%
high negligence or reckless
31.9%
reasonably likely or greater
15.7%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.1% none, 2.5% low, 86.2% moderate, 11.2% 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.
2 citations taken to the federal commission · 0% of citations on record
  • Settled 1 · 50%
  • Vacated or withdrawn 1 · 50%
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 2 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
51%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$8K proposed, $4K 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 2015-10-14.

MSHA sampling at Connor Coal Company Inc No 1 shows 94% of 374 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: 2015-12-10, 10 years ago
94%
within 1.5 mg/m3
374
samples
7.02
dust max (mg/m3)
2
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.
224 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 150 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR166
  • SHUTTLE CAR OPERATOR (STANDARD SIDE)56
  • SCOOP CAR OPERATOR30

Silica (quartz)

Last sampled: 2015-11-16, 10 years ago
6.8
silica avg (%)
24
samples
27.0
silica max (%)
Most-sampled occupations
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR20

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: 2015-03-17, 11 years ago
0%
over PEL
41
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • SHUTTLE CAR OPERATOR (STANDARD SIDE)11
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR8
  • SCOOP CAR OPERATOR7
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
2015 97% 60
2014 97% 34
2013 86% 64
2012 100% 33
2011 86% 29
2009 94% 18
2008 98% 60
2007 92% 63
2006 100% 13
Silica (quartz) by year
Year silica avg (%) samples
2015 9.0 6
2014 3.4 3
2013 3.5 2
2011 2.1 2
2009 7.7 3
2008 7.9 3
2007 9.2 4
2006 3.8 1
Noise by year
Year over PEL samples
2015 0% 5
2014 0% 5
2013 0% 1
2012 0% 5
2011 0% 10
2008 0% 5
2007 0% 5
2006 0% 5
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.

Connor Coal Company Inc No 1 recorded 6.81 reportable injury cases per 100 full-time workers in 2013.

Injury rate, 2013
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.
6.81
total case rate
6.81
days-away rate
0.000
fatality rate
Above average. The US coal mining average was 3.94 and the all-US-mining average was 2.99 cases per 100 workers.
In Kentucky, coal mining averaged 4.63 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.
Year total case rate days-away fatal
2013 * 6.81 6.81 0.000
2012 * 0.00 0.00 0.000
2008 * 0.00 0.00 0.000
2007 * 0.00 0.00 0.000
* Fewer than 100,000 employee-hours that year; the rate is less stable.
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. Ella Ruth Evans Coal Company Inc 1981 to 2006
  2. Double C Enterprises Inc 2006 to 2010
  3. Blackhawk Mining LLC 2010 to 2010
  4. Rain Coal Company LLC 2010 to 2014
  5. KRD Coal Co., Inc. 2014 to 2015
  6. Connor Coal Company, Inc. 2015 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)
2015 18 71,101
2014 12 65,013
2013 17 86,053
2012 13 68,161
2011 13 29,324
2010 0
2009 8 26,443
2008 22 102,742
2007 22 107,721
2006 9 10,845
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Connor Coal Company Inc No 1 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
2015 Q4 3,955 31 6 7838.2
2015 Q3 4,590 43 12 9368.2
2015 Q2 8,244 52 11 6307.6
2015 Q1 1,898 20 4 10537.4
2014 Q3 476 85 23 178571.4
2014 Q2 7,518 68 16 9045.0
2014 Q1 6,038 48 5 7949.7
2013 Q4 7,441 59 14 7929.0
Show 25 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2013 Q3 8,181 62 12 7578.5
2013 Q2 8,805 50 16 5678.6
2013 Q1 4,930 78 31 15821.5
2012 Q4 6,774 43 15 6347.8
2012 Q3 4,887 36 17 7366.5
2012 Q2 7,890 33 18 4182.5
2012 Q1 6,270 20 4 3189.8
2011 Q4 6,863 89 51 12968.1
2011 Q3 4,735 22 4 4646.3
2011 Q2 4,335 33 7 7612.5
2011 Q1 179 19 6 106145.3
2010 Q4 0 5 3
2009 Q3 733 0 0 0.0
2009 Q2 1,652 1 0 605.3
2009 Q1 9,654 11 7 1139.4
2008 Q4 12,264 9 4 733.9
2008 Q3 11,729 10 7 852.6
2008 Q2 12,799 13 7 1015.7
2008 Q1 7,049 14 9 1986.1
2007 Q4 12,082 18 3 1489.8
2007 Q3 11,038 14 3 1268.3
2007 Q2 11,921 36 9 3019.9
2007 Q1 9,320 9 1 965.7
2006 Q4 5,699 3 1 526.4
2006 Q3 0 1 0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

2 on file

2013 · 1 incident

September 26, 2013 KY · Coal roof bolter, rock bolter, pinner, mobile roof support operator (mrs) FALL OF FACE/RIB/PILLAR/SIDE/HIGHWALL
Rain Coal Company LLC · Struck by rolling or sliding object

Bolt machine man was cleaning dust box when a rib rolled off and stuck him on the lower left leg. He tried to continue working but his leg was hurting so he was taken to the surface. he then said that it was sore but could drive home. Damage is unknown at this time.

2011 · 1 incident

May 31, 2011 KY · Coal electrician, lineman ELECTRICAL
Rain Coal Company LLC · Contact with electrical current

Troubleshooting elec. panel, got hand into elec. wire.