Mining Incidents

J & T: 97 MSHA citations Coal

Ember Contracting Inc. · Underground
Controlled by Randy Gilkerson
Mousie, Knott County, KY  ·  Abandoned and Sealed
MSHA Mine ID: 1519258

J & T has $12K in proposed MSHA penalties and $5K outstanding across 7 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

Watch this mine

Email me when a new MSHA incident is filed at J & T.

Fatalities
0
Total incidents
3
Years on record
2008–2010
Latest incident
Feb 2010
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2008
97
citations
24
significant & substantial
$12,011
proposed penalties
$7,475
paid to date
62% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $4,536 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2008
27
inspections on record
1,262
inspection hours
7.7
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.
97 citations across 1,262 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

J & T has $12K in proposed MSHA penalties and $5K outstanding across 7 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.
$12K
proposed penalties
$12K
current assessed
$7K
paid to date
$5K
outstanding
96 assessments are final orders; 7 contested dockets.
Of $5K in penalties contested before the Commission, $5K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2010-07-28.
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.
25.0%
significant & substantial
1.0%
high negligence or reckless
25.0%
reasonably likely or greater
3.1%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 11.5% low, 87.5% moderate, 1.0% 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.
41 citations taken to the federal commission · 42% of citations on record
  • Settled 41 · 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 9 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
0%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$5K proposed, $5K 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 2009-07-27.
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 2009-1135 Prevail Paez 2011 $1K → $1K
KENT 2009-1293 Prevail Paez 2011 $1K → $1K
KENT 2009-354 Prevail Paez 2011 $880 → $880
KENT 2009-251 Prevail Paez 2011 $551 → $551
KENT 2009-533 Prevail Paez 2011 $490 → $490
KENT 2009-1367 Prevail Paez 2011 $200 → $200
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at J & T shows 84% of 163 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: 2010-07-29, 16 years ago
84%
within 1.5 mg/m3
163
samples
4.02
dust max (mg/m3)
91 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 72 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • CUTTING MACHINE OPERATOR78
  • SCOOP CAR OPERATOR23
  • ROOF BOLTER (SINGLE HEAD)17

Silica (quartz)

Last sampled: 2010-03-17, 16 years ago
3.1
silica avg (%)
17
samples
6.2
silica max (%)
Most-sampled occupations
  • CUTTING MACHINE OPERATOR8

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: 2010-03-16, 16 years ago
0%
over PEL
18
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • ROOF BOLTER (SINGLE HEAD)6
  • COAL DRILL OPERATOR3
  • CUTTING MACHINE OPERATOR3
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 81% 48
2009 82% 89
2008 96% 26
Silica (quartz) by year
Year silica avg (%) samples
2010 1.7 1
2009 3.2 13
2008 3.2 3
Noise by year
Year over PEL samples
2010 0% 2
2009 0% 10
2008 0% 6
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.

J & T recorded 5.11 reportable injury cases per 100 full-time workers in 2009.

Injury rate, 2009
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.
5.11
total case rate
0.00
days-away rate
0.000
fatality rate
Above average. The US coal mining average was 4.16 and the all-US-mining average was 3.36 cases per 100 workers.
In Kentucky, coal mining averaged 5.04 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. Ember Contracting Inc. 2008 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)
2010 17 60,561
2009 17 109,482
2008 14 34,614
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

J & T sits in Knott County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 2.8% 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.
Knott County, Kentucky · Population 14,046
2.8%
Mining share of county employment
$37,736
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 Q3 3,225 8 3 2480.6
2010 Q2 10,390 10 3 962.5
2010 Q1 11,696 10 0 855.0
2009 Q4 11,175 9 5 805.4
2009 Q3 10,060 16 4 1590.5
2009 Q2 8,916 23 3 2579.6
2009 Q1 9,023 4 0 443.3
2008 Q4 7,725 4 1 517.8
Show 1 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2008 Q3 6,302 13 5 2062.8
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

3 on file

2010 · 1 incident

February 19, 2010 KY · Coal cutting machine operator, ripper, universal operator HANDLING OF MATERIALS
Ember Contracting Inc. · Over-exertion in lifting objects

EE stated that for the last few weeks he had been having back and leg pains when he was hanging the cutting machine cable.

2009 · 1 incident

February 11, 2009 KY · Coal cutting machine operator, ripper, universal operator HANDLING OF MATERIALS
Ember Contracting Inc. · Over-exertion in lifting objects

EE stated that he experienced pain in his lower back and left leg while loading rock dust.

2008 · 1 incident

September 23, 2008 KY · Coal discontinued 1/31/2014. several other codes cover scoop car operator OTHER
Ember Contracting Inc. · Unclassified, insufficient data

Employee stated that he experienced lower back pain when he stepped down to the ground from the top of scoop batteries that he had just charged. This incident occurred outside and the step down distance is approx. 23".