Darby Road Mine #1 has $100K in proposed MSHA penalties and $29K outstanding across 12 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.
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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
1
Years on record
2011
Latest incident
Nov 2011
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2009
92
citations
34
significant & substantial
$100,474
proposed penalties
$47,228
paid to date
47% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $53,246 gap.
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: 858 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Darby Road Mine #1 has $100K in proposed MSHA penalties and $29K outstanding across 12 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.
$100K
proposed penalties
$76K
current assessed
$47K
paid to date
$29K
outstanding
91 assessments are final orders; 12 contested dockets.
Of $68K in penalties contested before the Commission, $44K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2017-07-12.
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.
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.
58citations taken to the federal commission · 63% of citations on record
Settled
55 · 95%
Vacated or withdrawn
3 · 5%
69%
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 Vacated and withdrawn citations, and settlements that removed the designation, count against.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 35 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
36%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$68K proposed, $44K 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 2020-01-12.
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.
MSHA sampling at Darby Road Mine #1 shows 100% of 34 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: 2017-06-28, 9 years ago
100%
within 1.5 mg/m3
34
samples
0.50
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.
30 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 4 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
BULLDOZER OPERATOR9
REFUSE TRUCK DRIVER/BACKFILL TRUCK DRIVE8
HIGHLIFT OPERATOR/FRONT END LOADER5
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.
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.
Darby Road Mine #1 recorded 1.58 reportable injury cases per 100 full-time workers in 2011.
Injury rate, 2011
ⓘ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.
1.58
total case rate
1.58
days-away rate
0.000
fatality rate
Below average. The US coal mining average was 3.83 and the all-US-mining average was 3.08 cases per 100 workers.
In Virginia, coal mining averaged 3.41 cases per 100 workers that year.
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.
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)
2022
0
2021
0
2019
0
2018
0
2017
3
2016
3
2015
1
2014
2
2013
6
10,056
2012
15
58,820
2011
46
197,873
2010
5
16,228
2009
3
1,741
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.
Darby Road Mine #1 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
2022 Q1
0
0
0
2021 Q4
0
0
0
2019 Q4
0
0
0
2018 Q3
0
0
0
2017 Q4
701
0
0
0.0
2017 Q3
1,024
3
2
2929.7
2017 Q2
1,512
0
0
0.0
2017 Q1
2,640
16
2
6060.6
Show 32 earlier quartersHide earlier quarters
Quarter
Hours worked
Citations
S&S
Per 1M hrs
2016 Q4
1,920
0
0
0.0
2016 Q3
1,026
0
0
0.0
2016 Q2
1,204
0
0
0.0
2016 Q1
352
0
0
0.0
2015 Q4
0
0
0
2015 Q3
370
2
0
5405.4
2015 Q2
384
0
0
0.0
2015 Q1
571
0
0
0.0
2014 Q4
1,072
0
0
0.0
2014 Q3
637
1
1
1569.9
2014 Q2
288
2
0
6944.4
2014 Q1
994
4
1
4024.1
2013 Q4
0
0
0
2013 Q3
0
0
0
2013 Q2
6,911
8
3
1157.6
2013 Q1
963
0
0
0.0
2012 Q4
320
0
0
0.0
2012 Q3
517
6
1
11605.4
2012 Q2
7,665
0
0
0.0
2012 Q1
6,127
6
2
979.3
2011 Q4
22,061
3
3
136.0
2011 Q3
40,194
12
6
298.6
2011 Q2
42,815
14
7
327.0
2011 Q1
21,157
0
0
0.0
2010 Q4
10,560
4
1
378.8
2010 Q3
0
6
2
2010 Q2
473
0
0
0.0
2010 Q1
0
0
0
2009 Q4
0
0
0
2009 Q3
0
0
0
2009 Q2
500
1
0
2000.0
2009 Q1
750
0
0
0.0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.
Reportable incidents
1 on file
2011 · 1 incident
November 10, 2011VA · Coalmaintenance man, mechanic, repair/serviceman, boilermaker, fueler, tire tech, field service techHANDLING OF MATERIALS