Mining Incidents

Mine #1: 109 MSHA citations Coal

KC Coals Inc · Surface
Controlled by Estate of Homer Short
Paintsville, Johnson County, KY  ·  Abandoned
MSHA Mine ID: 1518785

Mine #1 has $15K in proposed MSHA penalties and $72 outstanding across 0 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 2005
109
citations
62
significant & substantial
$14,593
proposed penalties
$14,521
paid to date
100% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $72 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2004
36
inspections on record
1,135
inspection hours
9.6
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.
109 citations across 1,135 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Mine #1 has $15K in proposed MSHA penalties and $72 outstanding across 0 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.
$15K
proposed penalties
$15K
current assessed
$15K
paid to date
$72
outstanding
104 assessments are final orders; 0 contested dockets.
As of the most recent assessment on 2015-04-14.
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.
59.6%
significant & substantial
1.9%
high negligence or reckless
59.6%
reasonably likely or greater
17.3%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 8.7% low, 89.4% moderate, 1.9% high, 0.0% reckless.
Source: MSHA violations gravity and negligence coding, updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at Mine #1 shows 96% of 90 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: 2018-01-09, 8 years ago
96%
within 1.5 mg/m3
90
samples
2.31
dust max (mg/m3)
0
over MSHA ECV
The excessive concentration value (ECV) is MSHA's own per-sample enforcement threshold, which builds in measurement uncertainty; a sample over its ECV can trigger a citation. The count covers only samples MSHA assigned an ECV.
67 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 23 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • BULLDOZER OPERATOR28
  • REFUSE TRUCK DRIVER/BACKFILL TRUCK DRIVE22
  • MECHANIC16

Silica (quartz)

Last sampled: 2017-07-06, 9 years ago
13.3
silica avg (%)
4
samples
36.0
silica max (%)
Most-sampled occupations
  • HIGHWALL DRILL OPERATOR2
  • MECHANIC1
  • REFUSE TRUCK DRIVER/BACKFILL TRUCK DRIVE1

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: 2017-12-13, 8 years ago
5%
over PEL
39
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • REFUSE TRUCK DRIVER/BACKFILL TRUCK DRIVE13
  • BULLDOZER OPERATOR12
  • BACKHOE OPERATOR4
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
2018 100% 1
2017 100% 16
2016 100% 12
2015 100% 11
2014 100% 11
2013 100% 4
2010 100% 1
2009 94% 16
2008 100% 5
2007 50% 2
2006 100% 4
2005 71% 7
Silica (quartz) by year
Year silica avg (%) samples
2017 1.2 1
2009 36.0 1
2006 2.4 1
2005 13.8 1
Noise by year
Year over PEL samples
2017 0% 12
2016 0% 3
2014 0% 4
2013 0% 4
2009 0% 5
2008 0% 5
2005 33% 6
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.
Ownership history
  1. KC Coals 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)
2018 4
2017 6
2016 8 8
2015 8 8,105
2014 9
2013 4
2012 0
2011 0
2010 3
2009 5
2008 2
2007 3
2006 4 275
2005 5 7,447
2004 1 9,909
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Mine #1 sits in Johnson County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 1.9% 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.
Johnson County, Kentucky · Population 22,464
1.9%
Mining share of county employment
$43,014
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
2018 Q2 701 0 0 0.0
2018 Q1 2,182 0 0 0.0
2017 Q4 2,902 0 0 0.0
2017 Q3 2,565 0 0 0.0
2017 Q2 2,480 0 0 0.0
2017 Q1 2,764 0 0 0.0
2016 Q4 2,794 0 0 0.0
2016 Q3 3,044 0 0 0.0
Show 48 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2016 Q2 2,816 0 0 0.0
2016 Q1 3,125 0 0 0.0
2015 Q4 3,926 0 0 0.0
2015 Q3 4,041 0 0 0.0
2015 Q2 3,562 3 1 842.2
2015 Q1 2,776 0 0 0.0
2014 Q4 3,879 1 0 257.8
2014 Q3 3,894 0 0 0.0
2014 Q2 3,701 0 0 0.0
2014 Q1 3,851 0 0 0.0
2013 Q4 3,184 0 0 0.0
2013 Q3 528 0 0 0.0
2013 Q2 0 0 0
2013 Q1 0 0 0
2012 Q4 0 0 0
2012 Q3 0 0 0
2012 Q2 0 0 0
2012 Q1 0 0 0
2011 Q4 0 0 0
2011 Q3 0 0 0
2011 Q2 0 0 0
2011 Q1 0 0 0
2010 Q4 0 0 0
2010 Q3 0 0 0
2010 Q2 373 1 0 2681.0
2010 Q1 179 2 0 11173.2
2009 Q4 2,706 27 16 9977.8
2009 Q3 2,635 3 1 1138.5
2009 Q2 1,380 0 0 0.0
2009 Q1 1,067 0 0 0.0
2008 Q4 1,079 0 0 0.0
2008 Q3 716 0 0 0.0
2008 Q2 77 0 0 0.0
2008 Q1 300 9 4 30000.0
2007 Q4 32 0 0 0.0
2007 Q3 927 0 0 0.0
2007 Q2 423 0 0 0.0
2007 Q1 216 0 0 0.0
2006 Q4 784 0 0 0.0
2006 Q3 1,420 0 0 0.0
2006 Q2 2,335 18 8 7708.8
2006 Q1 3,574 0 0 0.0
2005 Q4 2,252 28 20 12433.4
2005 Q3 2,637 0 0 0.0
2005 Q2 2,837 16 11 5639.8
2005 Q1 1,655 0 0 0.0
2004 Q4 1,080 0 0 0.0
2004 Q3 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.