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: 318 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Kocher Breaker has $1K in proposed MSHA penalties and $726 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.
$1K
proposed penalties
$1K
current assessed
$486
paid to date
$726
outstanding
13 assessments are final orders; 2 contested dockets.
Of $958 in penalties contested before the Commission, $671 was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2004-01-27.
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.
1citations taken to the federal commission · 8% of citations on record
Settled
1 · 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 Vacated and withdrawn citations, and settlements that removed the designation, count against.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 1 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
30%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$500 proposed, $350 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 A dismissed or defaulted contest leaves the citation standing as issued; a vacated or withdrawn citation is removed from the violation record.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 2004-06-22.
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 Kocher Breaker shows 100% of 18 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: 2001-02-20, 25 years ago
100%
within 1.5 mg/m3
18
samples
1.28
dust max (mg/m3)
8 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 10 by the operator.
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.
Kocher Breaker recorded 0.00 reportable injury cases per 100 full-time workers in 2000.
Injury rate, 2000
ⓘ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 7.74 and the all-US-mining average was 5.64 cases per 100 workers.
In Pennsylvania, coal mining averaged 8.49 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.
Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.
Workforce and production
Year
Employees
2004
0
2003
0
2002
0
2001
8
2000
22
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.
Kocher Breaker sits in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, where the Census mining category is 1.1% 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.
Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania · Population 143,259
1.1%
Mining share of county employment
$66,901
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
2004 Q2
0
0
0
2004 Q1
0
6
4
2003 Q4
0
0
0
2003 Q3
0
0
0
2003 Q2
0
0
0
2003 Q1
0
5
1
2002 Q4
0
0
0
2002 Q3
0
0
0
Show 10 earlier quartersHide earlier quarters
Quarter
Hours worked
Citations
S&S
Per 1M hrs
2002 Q2
0
1
0
2002 Q1
0
0
0
2001 Q4
0
0
0
2001 Q3
2,822
0
0
0.0
2001 Q2
4,475
0
0
0.0
2001 Q1
5,823
1
0
171.7
2000 Q4
4,405
0
0
0.0
2000 Q3
4,098
0
0
0.0
2000 Q2
9,586
0
0
0.0
2000 Q1
12,920
0
0
0.0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.
Reportable incidents
24 on file
1998 · 1 incident
May 27, 1998PA · Coalassayer, geologist, metallurgist, engineer, engineer managementSLIP OR FALL OF PERSON
LIFTING RR STEEL OUT OF SUMP HOLE WITH ANOTHER EMPL,THIS EMPL THREW DOWN HIS END WHILE I.NAME HELD ON WRENCHING HIS BACK.DIDNT MISS TIME UNTIL HOSPITALIZED FOR DISC SURGERY 7-26-89.
January 6, 1989PA · Coalwarehouseman, bagger, palletizer/stacker, store keeper, packager, fabricator, cleaning plant operatorHANDLING OF MATERIALS
THE FIRE MOST L3KELY STARTED BY SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION WITHIN THE DEPOSITED REFUSE. EXACT DATES AND TIMES ARE NOT DETERMINABLE. COAL REFUSE IN INHERENTLY SUBJECT TO SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION.
December 19, 1986PA · Coalbulldozer operator, universal operator, heavy equipment operator, operating engineerHANDLING OF MATERIALS