Mining Incidents

Mine # 1: 565 MSHA citations Coal

Controlled by Harold K Simpson
Delphia, Perry County, KY  ·  Abandoned
MSHA Mine ID: 1518419

Mine # 1 has $149K in proposed MSHA penalties and $147K outstanding across 1 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
2
Years on record
2003–2005
Latest incident
Nov 2005
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2001
565
citations
207
significant & substantial
$148,709
proposed penalties
$1,278
paid to date
1% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $147,431 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2001
55
inspections on record
2,173
inspection hours
26.0
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.
565 citations across 2,173 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Mine # 1 has $149K in proposed MSHA penalties and $147K 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.
$149K
proposed penalties
$149K
current assessed
$1K
paid to date
$147K
outstanding
546 assessments are final orders; 1 contested dockets.
Of $1K in penalties contested before the Commission, $1K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2006-08-07.
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.
37.9%
significant & substantial
1.1%
high negligence or reckless
41.8%
reasonably likely or greater
5.9%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 0.7% low, 98.2% moderate, 1.1% 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 · 0% of citations on record
  • Stood as issued 2 · 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%
0%
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 2006-06-05.
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 2006-319 Default Lesnick 2006 $1K → $1K
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at Mine # 1 shows 97% of 299 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: 2006-03-31, 20 years ago
97%
within 1.5 mg/m3
299
samples
4.55
dust max (mg/m3)
155 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 144 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR118
  • ROOF BOLTER (SINGLE HEAD)34
  • SHUTTLE CAR OPERATOR (STANDARD SIDE)19

Silica (quartz)

Last sampled: 2006-03-07, 20 years ago
6.8
silica avg (%)
19
samples
18.7
silica max (%)
Most-sampled occupations
  • CONTINUOUS MINER 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: 2005-06-24, 21 years ago
0%
over PEL
21
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • ROOF BOLTER (SINGLE HEAD)5
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR4
  • SHUTTLE CAR OPERATOR (STANDARD SIDE)4
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
2006 94% 32
2005 95% 97
2004 100% 67
2003 99% 71
2002 100% 32
Silica (quartz) by year
Year silica avg (%) samples
2006 4.8 3
2005 4.4 11
2004 13.4 3
2003 13.2 1
2002 13.0 1
Noise by year
Year over PEL samples
2005 0% 10
2004 0% 5
2003 0% 3
2002 0% 3
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.
Ownership history
  1. Simpson Mining Company Inc 2001 to 2004
  2. Simpco Enterprises Corporation 2004 to 2004
  3. Simpson Mining Company Inc. 2004 to 2004
  4. Cumberland Gap Contracting Inc. 2004 to 2004
  5. Motivation Enterprise Inc. 2004 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)
2006 4 17,069
2005 10 84,734
2004 13 172,363
2003 14 49,478
2002 10 44,817
2001 0
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Mine # 1 sits in Perry County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 3.3% 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.
Perry County, Kentucky · Population 27,847
3.3%
Mining share of county employment
$45,261
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
2006 Q3 0 2 0
2006 Q1 1,436 41 13 28551.5
2005 Q4 1,925 49 20 25454.5
2005 Q3 1,558 20 6 12837.0
2005 Q2 1,518 42 21 27668.0
2005 Q1 5,971 27 8 4521.9
2004 Q4 5,903 27 3 4573.9
2004 Q3 4,805 44 22 9157.1
Show 12 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2004 Q2 6,760 65 26 9615.4
2004 Q1 537 31 10 57728.1
2003 Q4 1,155 19 7 16450.2
2003 Q3 1,137 40 12 35180.3
2003 Q2 1,121 24 11 21409.5
2003 Q1 2,354 20 5 8496.2
2002 Q4 1,698 35 10 20612.5
2002 Q3 2,497 20 9 8009.6
2002 Q2 2,294 22 11 9590.2
2002 Q1 0 0 0
2001 Q4 0 0 0
2001 Q3 0 2 0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

2 on file

2005 · 1 incident

November 1, 2005 KY · Coal discontinued 1/31/2014. several other codes cover scoop car operator HANDLING OF MATERIALS
Motivation Enterprise Inc. · Caught in, under or between (Not Elsewhere Classified)

When trying to hook a chain up to pull a shuttle car, slack from chain hit his right hand when tying it to a 482 scoop. Employee worked until 11-15-05 then quit.

2003 · 1 incident

January 24, 2003 KY · Coal laborer, bull gang, faceman, parts runner, roustabout, roof trimmer/scaler POWERED HAULAGE
Simpson Mining Company Inc · Struck by... (Not Elsewhere Classified)

MOVING ROCK FROM CONVEYOR CHAIN ON A 506 BRIDGE CARRIER.