Mining Incidents

Mine No 1: 71 MSHA citations Coal

Wesley Leasing Inc · Underground
Controlled by John P Dillon
Cucumber, Mcdowell County, WV  ·  Abandoned and Sealed
MSHA Mine ID: 4608737

Mine No 1 has $9K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 0 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
3
Years on record
2000–2002
Latest incident
Apr 2002
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 1999
71
citations
15
significant & substantial
$8,949
proposed penalties
$8,949
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
53
inspections on record
1,370
inspection hours
5.2
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.
71 citations across 1,370 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Mine No 1 has $9K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 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.
$9K
proposed penalties
$9K
current assessed
$9K
paid to date
$0
outstanding
71 assessments are final orders; 0 contested dockets.
As of the most recent assessment on 2002-10-31.
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.
21.1%
significant & substantial
8.5%
high negligence or reckless
21.1%
reasonably likely or greater
39.4%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 29.6% low, 62.0% moderate, 8.5% high, 0.0% reckless.
Source: MSHA violations gravity and negligence coding, updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at Mine No 1 shows 92% of 179 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: 2002-09-13, 23 years ago
92%
within 1.5 mg/m3
179
samples
8.38
dust max (mg/m3)
93 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 86 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR95
  • SHUTTLE CAR OPERATOR (STANDARD SIDE)27
  • ROOF BOLTER (SINGLE HEAD)10

Silica (quartz)

Last sampled: 2002-08-27, 23 years ago
3.9
silica avg (%)
16
samples
7.9
silica max (%)
Most-sampled occupations
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR10

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: 2002-05-01, 24 years ago
7%
over PEL
14
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • SHUTTLE CAR OPERATOR (STANDARD SIDE)5
  • ROOF BOLTER (SINGLE HEAD)4
  • CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR3
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
2002 84% 44
2001 96% 69
2000 94% 66
Silica (quartz) by year
Year silica avg (%) samples
2002 3.1 4
2001 3.8 8
2000 4.9 4
Noise by year
Year over PEL samples
2002 0% 4
2001 20% 5
2000 0% 5
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.

Mine No 1 recorded 0.00 reportable injury cases per 100 full-time workers in 2002.

Injury rate, 2002
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
Below average. The US coal mining average was 6.89 and the all-US-mining average was 5.05 cases per 100 workers.
In West Virginia, coal mining averaged 9.17 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.
Year total case rate days-away fatal
2002 * 0.00 0.00 0.000
2001 * 0.00 0.00 0.000
2000 * 5.96 5.96 0.000
* Fewer than 100,000 employee-hours that year; the rate is less stable.
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.
Ownership history
  1. Wesley Leasing Inc 1998 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)
2003 0
2002 22 157,861
2001 23 126,671
2000 18 109,245
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Mine No 1 sits in McDowell County, West Virginia, where the Census mining category is 13.0% 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.
McDowell County, West Virginia · Population 18,413
13.0%
Mining share of county employment
$29,980
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
2003 Q1 0 0 0
2002 Q4 8,232 5 1 607.4
2002 Q3 10,080 2 0 198.4
2002 Q2 9,240 4 1 432.9
2002 Q1 11,040 10 2 905.8
2001 Q4 9,752 4 2 410.2
2001 Q3 10,176 13 4 1277.5
2001 Q2 10,560 8 1 757.6
Show 5 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2001 Q1 3,200 11 2 3437.5
2000 Q4 10,560 4 0 378.8
2000 Q3 8,640 4 1 463.0
2000 Q2 7,180 5 1 696.4
2000 Q1 7,200 0 0 0.0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

3 on file

2002 · 1 incident

April 30, 2002 WV · Coal FALL OF ROOF OR BACK
Wesley Leasing Inc · Accident type, without injuries

ROOF FALL IN #5 RETURN AT SPAD #62. 4 TO 6 FOOT HIGH, 18 FEET WIDE, 90 TO 100 FEET TOWARD PILLAR LINE.

2000 · 2 incidents

November 7, 2000 WV · Coal shuttle car operator, mantrip operator, ramcar operator, rail runner, buggy operator FALL OF ROOF OR BACK
Wesley Leasing Inc · Struck by falling object

ACCORDING TO EMPLOYEE HE WAS WALKING TO HIS SUGGY TO GET SOME LUNCH WHEN A PIECE OF ROCK ABOUT SIZE OF A FOOTBALL FELL AND HIT HIM ON THE SHOULDERS.

May 4, 2000 WV · Coal FALL OF ROOF OR BACK
Wesley Leasing Inc · Accident type, without injuries

THE 14-3 JOY MINER WAS BACKING OUT OF THE PILLERLINE AFTER MINING WAS COMPLETED IN THE #1 ENTRY SPAD #117 WHEN THE INTERSECTION FELL & CAUGHT THE CUTTER HEAD ONLY Y