Mining Incidents

Mercer Wash Plant: 32 MSHA citations Metal/Non-Metal

Pitlik & Wick, Inc. · Surface
Controlled by Brian Pitlik; Scott Wick
MERCER,WI, Iron County, WI  ·  Intermittent
MSHA Mine ID: 4703165

Mercer Wash Plant has $3K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 1 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 2000
32
citations
6
significant & substantial
$3,055
proposed penalties
$3,055
paid to date
100% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $0 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2000
34
inspections on record
301
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: 301 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Mercer Wash Plant has $3K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 1 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.
$3K
proposed penalties
$3K
current assessed
$3K
paid to date
$0
outstanding
32 assessments are final orders; 1 contested dockets.
Of $200 in penalties contested before the Commission, $200 was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2016-10-06.
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.
18.8%
significant & substantial
0.0%
high negligence or reckless
18.8%
reasonably likely or greater
43.8%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 12.5% low, 87.5% 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.
2 citations taken to the federal commission · 6% of citations on record
  • Stood as issued 2 · 100%
0%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$200 proposed, $200 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 2009-10-09.
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
LAKE 2008-349M Dismissal Bulluck 2010 $200 → $200
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.
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.

Metal and nonmetal contaminants (personal samples)
Many samples are screening measurements of substances with no applicable exposure limit; they are counted as samples but excluded from every over-limit figure. Over-limit shares use only limit-tested samples.

Last sampled: 2024-09-17
3
samples
0
limit-tested
Most sampled contaminants
  • Respirable dust, <.1mg2
  • Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz1
Show the individual readings (3)
Date Contaminant Concentration Limit Conc / limit Occupation
2024-09-17 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Front-end Loader Operator
2019-06-11 Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz 0.13 Front-end Loader Operator
2000-10-19 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Front-end Loader Operator
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly. Metal/nonmetal contaminant figures come from MSHA's Personal Health Samples and Area Samples files (public record), updated weekly.
Ownership history
  1. Northern Lakes Concrete, Inc. 1998 to 2014
  2. Pitlik & Wick, Inc. 2014 to present
Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.
Workforce and production
Year Employees
2026 1
2025 1
2024 1
2023 1
2022 1
2021 1
2020 1
2019 1
2018 1
2017 1
2016 1
2015 1
2014 1
2013 1
2012 1
2011 1
2010 1
2009 1
2008 1
2007 1
2006 1
2005 1
2004 1
2003 1
2002 1
2001 1
2000 1
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Mercer Wash Plant sits in Iron County, Wisconsin, where the Census mining category is 0.3% 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.
Iron County, Wisconsin · Population 6,164
0.3%
Mining share of county employment
$59,058
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
2026 Q2 186 0 0 0.0
2026 Q1 0 0 0
2025 Q4 246 0 0 0.0
2025 Q3 362 0 0 0.0
2025 Q2 93 0 0 0.0
2025 Q1 0 0 0
2024 Q4 151 0 0 0.0
2024 Q3 481 0 0 0.0
Show 98 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2024 Q2 125 0 0 0.0
2024 Q1 0 0 0
2023 Q4 137 0 0 0.0
2023 Q3 281 0 0 0.0
2023 Q2 0 0 0
2023 Q1 0 0 0
2022 Q4 154 0 0 0.0
2022 Q3 320 0 0 0.0
2022 Q2 63 0 0 0.0
2022 Q1 0 0 0
2021 Q4 113 0 0 0.0
2021 Q3 121 0 0 0.0
2021 Q2 170 0 0 0.0
2021 Q1 0 0 0
2020 Q4 89 0 0 0.0
2020 Q3 114 0 0 0.0
2020 Q2 74 0 0 0.0
2020 Q1 0 0 0
2019 Q4 30 0 0 0.0
2019 Q3 667 0 0 0.0
2019 Q2 89 0 0 0.0
2019 Q1 0 0 0
2018 Q4 16 0 0 0.0
2018 Q3 198 0 0 0.0
2018 Q2 42 0 0 0.0
2018 Q1 0 0 0
2017 Q4 18 0 0 0.0
2017 Q3 148 0 0 0.0
2017 Q2 97 0 0 0.0
2017 Q1 0 0 0
2016 Q4 90 1 0 11111.1
2016 Q3 128 0 0 0.0
2016 Q2 145 0 0 0.0
2016 Q1 0 0 0
2015 Q4 50 2 0 40000.0
2015 Q3 193 0 0 0.0
2015 Q2 137 0 0 0.0
2015 Q1 0 0 0
2014 Q4 145 5 0 34482.8
2014 Q3 193 2 1 10362.7
2014 Q2 30 0 0 0.0
2014 Q1 0 0 0
2013 Q4 6 0 0 0.0
2013 Q3 277 0 0 0.0
2013 Q2 108 0 0 0.0
2013 Q1 0 0 0
2012 Q4 67 1 0 14925.4
2012 Q3 188 0 0 0.0
2012 Q2 96 0 0 0.0
2012 Q1 0 0 0
2011 Q4 318 0 0 0.0
2011 Q3 188 2 0 10638.3
2011 Q2 0 0 0
2011 Q1 0 0 0
2010 Q4 38 0 0 0.0
2010 Q3 226 0 0 0.0
2010 Q2 150 1 0 6666.7
2010 Q1 0 0 0
2009 Q4 51 0 0 0.0
2009 Q3 333 0 0 0.0
2009 Q2 22 2 0 90909.1
2009 Q1 0 0 0
2008 Q4 85 0 0 0.0
2008 Q3 317 0 0 0.0
2008 Q2 263 0 0 0.0
2008 Q1 0 0 0
2007 Q4 152 0 0 0.0
2007 Q3 342 2 0 5848.0
2007 Q2 204 0 0 0.0
2007 Q1 0 0 0
2006 Q4 144 0 0 0.0
2006 Q3 330 0 0 0.0
2006 Q2 418 6 1 14354.1
2006 Q1 0 0 0
2005 Q4 213 0 0 0.0
2005 Q3 371 0 0 0.0
2005 Q2 152 4 2 26315.8
2005 Q1 0 0 0
2004 Q4 140 0 0 0.0
2004 Q3 247 2 0 8097.2
2004 Q2 224 0 0 0.0
2004 Q1 0 0 0
2003 Q4 128 0 0 0.0
2003 Q3 311 0 0 0.0
2003 Q2 274 0 0 0.0
2003 Q1 0 0 0
2002 Q4 120 0 0 0.0
2002 Q3 261 0 0 0.0
2002 Q2 50 0 0 0.0
2002 Q1 0 0 0
2001 Q4 269 0 0 0.0
2001 Q3 372 0 0 0.0
2001 Q2 129 0 0 0.0
2001 Q1 0 0 0
2000 Q4 89 2 2 22471.9
2000 Q3 152 0 0 0.0
2000 Q2 51 0 0 0.0
2000 Q1 0 0 0

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.