Mining Incidents

Mountainside Wash Plant: 51 MSHA citations Coal

Controlled by Damian Caldwell
Clairfield, Claiborne County, TN  ·  Abandoned
MSHA Mine ID: 4003181

Mountainside Wash Plant has $3K in proposed MSHA penalties and $60 outstanding across 2 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
2
Years on record
2001–2002
Latest incident
Mar 2002
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2002
51
citations
4
significant & substantial
$3,471
proposed penalties
$3,411
paid to date
98% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $60 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2002
32
inspections on record
571
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: 571 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Mountainside Wash Plant has $3K in proposed MSHA penalties and $60 outstanding across 2 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
$60
outstanding
51 assessments are final orders; 2 contested dockets.
Of $338 in penalties contested before the Commission, $338 was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2007-11-15.
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.
7.8%
significant & substantial
0.0%
high negligence or reckless
7.8%
reasonably likely or greater
0.0%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 9.8% low, 90.2% 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.
3 citations taken to the federal commission · 6% of citations on record
  • Settled 3 · 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
$338 proposed, $338 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 2008-04-07.
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
SE 2008-552 Settlement Barbour 2010 $200 → $200
SE 2008-357 Settlement Lesnick 2010 $138 → $138
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at Mountainside Wash Plant shows 100% of 29 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: 2008-04-29, 18 years ago
100%
within 1.5 mg/m3
29
samples
0.39
dust max (mg/m3)
29 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 0 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • HIGHLIFT OPERATOR/FRONT END LOADER13
  • WASHER OPERATOR11
  • LABORER/BLACKSMITH2

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: 2008-04-29, 18 years ago
0%
over PEL
23
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • WASHER OPERATOR10
  • HIGHLIFT OPERATOR/FRONT END LOADER9
  • PREPARATION PLANT FOREMAN3
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
2008 100% 2
2007 100% 7
2006 100% 4
2005 100% 2
2004 100% 4
2003 100% 8
2002 100% 2
Noise by year
Year over PEL samples
2008 0% 2
2007 0% 7
2006 0% 2
2004 0% 4
2003 0% 5
2002 0% 3
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.
Ownership history
  1. Mountainside Coal Company Inc 2001 to present
Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.
Workforce and production
Year Employees
2009 0
2008 3
2007 2
2006 2
2005 2
2004 2
2003 3
2002 2
2001 1
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Mountainside Wash Plant sits in Claiborne County, Tennessee, where the Census mining category is 1.0% 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.
Claiborne County, Tennessee · Population 32,221
1.0%
Mining share of county employment
$46,587
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
2009 Q1 0 0 0
2008 Q4 2,390 0 0 0.0
2008 Q3 1,212 0 0 0.0
2008 Q2 1,598 0 0 0.0
2008 Q1 1,274 0 0 0.0
2007 Q4 1,095 3 2 2739.7
2007 Q3 1,095 5 1 4566.2
2007 Q2 1,327 0 0 0.0
Show 22 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2007 Q1 1,237 0 0 0.0
2006 Q4 1,415 0 0 0.0
2006 Q3 1,254 0 0 0.0
2006 Q2 1,423 1 0 702.7
2006 Q1 1,414 2 0 1414.4
2005 Q4 1,591 0 0 0.0
2005 Q3 1,304 0 0 0.0
2005 Q2 1,304 0 0 0.0
2005 Q1 1,260 0 0 0.0
2004 Q4 1,490 5 0 3355.7
2004 Q3 1,601 3 0 1873.8
2004 Q2 1,362 0 0 0.0
2004 Q1 1,371 0 0 0.0
2003 Q4 1,956 0 0 0.0
2003 Q3 1,686 2 0 1186.2
2003 Q2 1,400 0 0 0.0
2003 Q1 1,467 1 0 681.7
2002 Q4 1,405 0 0 0.0
2002 Q3 1,308 1 0 764.5
2002 Q2 1,308 0 0 0.0
2002 Q1 1,107 2 0 1806.7
2001 Q4 13 0 0 0.0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

2 on file

2002 · 1 incident

March 13, 2002 TN · Coal warehouseman, bagger, palletizer/stacker, store keeper, packager, fabricator, cleaning plant operator HANDLING OF MATERIALS
Mountainside Coal Company Inc · Over-exertion (Not Elsewhere Classified)

EE WAS MOVING WOODEN BLOCKS & ALSO PULLING WATER HOSE, WHEN NOTICED PAIN IN STOMACH.

2001 · 1 incident

December 10, 2001 TN · Coal mine manager, mine foreman, mine owner HANDLING OF MATERIALS
Mountainside Coal Company Inc · Struck by... (Not Elsewhere Classified)

WHILE PLACING A PIPE ACROSS POND DAM; CHAIN SLIPPED OFF OF PIPE, PIPE HIT EE ON OUTSIDE OF L. KNEE.