Mining Incidents

Highwall Miner # 37: 12 MSHA citations Coal

Controlled by U S Coal Corporation
harlan, Harlan County, KY  ·  Abandoned
MSHA Mine ID: 1519512

Highwall Miner # 37 has $2K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 2 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

Watch this mine

Email me when a new MSHA incident is filed at Highwall Miner # 37.

Fatalities
0
Total incidents
1
Years on record
2010
Latest incident
Oct 2010
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2010
12
citations
2
significant & substantial
$1,619
proposed penalties
$1,500
paid to date
93% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $119 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2010
3
inspections on record
96
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: 96 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Highwall Miner # 37 has $2K 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.
$2K
proposed penalties
$2K
current assessed
$2K
paid to date
$0
outstanding
12 assessments are final orders; 2 contested dockets.
Of $1K in penalties contested before the Commission, $1K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2011-05-10.
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.
16.7%
significant & substantial
0.0%
high negligence or reckless
16.7%
reasonably likely or greater
0.0%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 16.7% low, 83.3% moderate, 0.0% 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.
8 citations taken to the federal commission · 67% of citations on record
  • Settled 8 · 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 2 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
10%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$1K proposed, $1K 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 2011-08-30.
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 2011-1481 Settlement Miller 2012 $1K → $900
KENT 2011-543 Settlement Lewis 2012 $200 → $200
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at Highwall Miner # 37 shows 100% of 5 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: 2011-05-10, 15 years ago
100%
within 1.5 mg/m3
5
samples
0.32
dust max (mg/m3)
5 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 0 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • AUGER OPERATOR2
  • FORKLIFT OPERATOR1
  • GROUNDMAN1

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: 2011-05-10, 15 years ago
0%
over PEL
7
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • AUGER OPERATOR2
  • FORKLIFT OPERATOR2
  • ELECTRICIAN1
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
2011 100% 3
2010 100% 2
Noise by year
Year over PEL samples
2011 0% 4
2010 0% 3
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.

Highwall Miner # 37 recorded 0.00 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.
0.00
total case rate
0.00
days-away rate
0.000
fatality rate
No reportable injury cases in any year shown. Employee-hours were reported in each of those years, so these are true zeros rather than missing data. Citations, listed in the compliance record above, are inspector-found violations and are counted separately from worker injuries.
Below average. The US coal mining average was 3.83 and the all-US-mining average was 3.08 cases per 100 workers.
In Kentucky, coal mining averaged 4.28 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. Fox Knob Coal Co, Inc. 2010 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 0
2014 0
2013 0
2012 3 2,082
2011 15 114,457
2010 6 49,234
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Highwall Miner # 37 sits in Harlan County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 4.3% 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.
Harlan County, Kentucky · Population 26,185
4.3%
Mining share of county employment
$37,198
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 Q1 0 0 0
2014 Q4 0 0 0
2014 Q3 0 0 0
2014 Q2 0 0 0
2014 Q1 0 0 0
2013 Q4 0 0 0
2013 Q3 0 0 0
2013 Q2 0 0 0
Show 11 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2013 Q1 0 0 0
2012 Q4 0 0 0
2012 Q3 0 0 0
2012 Q2 0 0 0
2012 Q1 2,127 0 0 0.0
2011 Q4 7,822 0 0 0.0
2011 Q3 9,152 0 0 0.0
2011 Q2 13,625 9 2 660.6
2011 Q1 13,059 0 0 0.0
2010 Q4 6,199 3 0 483.9
2010 Q3 476 0 0 0.0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

1 on file

2010 · 1 incident

October 8, 2010 KY · Coal bulldozer operator, universal operator, heavy equipment operator, operating engineer HANDTOOLS (NONPOWERED)
Fox Knob Coal Co, Inc. · Over-exertion in wielding or throwing objects

The employee was using a 20 pound sledge hammer to hit the pins on a beam for a highwall miner. He raised the hammer over his head and came down with the hammer, when he felt something pull in his back. He worked the rest of the shift and went home and had to go the ER becuase he said he was in pain.