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Laurel Fork #2: 55 MSHA citations Coal

Linsco Energy, LLC · Underground
Controlled by Charles Collins
Beverly, Clay County, KY  ·  Abandoned and Sealed
MSHA Mine ID: 1519528

Laurel Fork #2 has $17K in proposed MSHA penalties and $5K outstanding across 4 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
0
Years on record
—
Latest incident
—
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2010
55
citations
15
significant & substantial
$17,200
proposed penalties
$7,341
paid to date
43% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $9,859 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
See Linsco Energy, LLC's full MSHA compliance history →
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2010
14
inspections on record
346
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: 346 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Laurel Fork #2 has $17K in proposed MSHA penalties and $5K outstanding across 4 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.
$17K
proposed penalties
$12K
current assessed
$7K
paid to date
$5K
outstanding
39 assessments are final orders; 4 contested dockets.
Of $14K in penalties contested before the Commission, $9K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2013-07-02.
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.
38.5%
significant & substantial
20.5%
high negligence or reckless
38.5%
reasonably likely or greater
10.3%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 2.6% low, 76.9% moderate, 20.5% 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.
18 citations taken to the federal commission · 33% of citations on record
  • Settled 6 · 33%
  • Stood as issued 12 · 67%
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 5 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
37%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$14K proposed, $9K 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 2013-10-18.
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 2012-1571 Settlement Harner 2013 $8K → $5K
KENT 2014-35 Settlement Simonton 2014 $3K → $1K
KENT 2011-667 Default Lesnick 2011 $2K → $2K
KENT 2013-165 Settlement Lesnick 2013 $1K → $700
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at Laurel Fork #2 shows 100% of 10 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: 2011-01-17, 15 years ago
100%
within 1.5 mg/m3
10
samples
1.44
dust max (mg/m3)
6 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 4 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR4
  • ROOF BOLTER (TWIN HEAD) (INTAKE SIDE)1
  • ROOF BOLTER (TWIN HEAD) (RETURN SIDE)1

Silica (quartz)

Last sampled: 2011-01-04, 15 years ago
10.9
silica avg (%)
1
samples
10.9
silica max (%)
See US coal mines ranked by silica in their dust samples.

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: 2010-12-22, 15 years ago
0%
over PEL
3
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • ROOF BOLTER (TWIN HEAD) (INTAKE SIDE)1
  • ROOF BOLTER (TWIN HEAD) (RETURN SIDE)1
  • SHUTTLE CAR OPERATOR (STANDARD SIDE)1
See US mines ranked by noise samples over the legal limit.
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% 2
2010 100% 8
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.
Ownership history
  1. M3 Energy Resources, LLC 2010 to 2012
  2. Linsco Energy, LLC 2012 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)
2013 0
2012 1
2011 3 2,621
2010 29 4,458
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Laurel Fork #2 sits in Clay County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 0.9% 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.
Clay County, Kentucky · Population 20,105
0.9%
Mining share of county employment
$39,607
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
2013 Q3 0 1 1
2013 Q2 0 0 0
2013 Q1 0 0 0
2012 Q4 0 0 0
2012 Q3 0 0 0
2012 Q2 0 8 1
2012 Q1 40 0 0 0.0
2011 Q4 0 1 0
Show 3 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2011 Q2 0 0 0
2011 Q1 3,730 32 9 8579.1
2010 Q4 1,279 13 4 10164.2

No reportable incidents on file.

MSHA has no recorded reportable accidents for this mine in the current dataset. New reports appear here within a week of being filed.