No 3: 269 MSHA citations
Coal
Pippa Passes,
Knott County,
KY
·
Abandoned and Sealed
MSHA Mine ID: 1517610
No 3 has $52K in proposed MSHA penalties and $17K outstanding across 1 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.
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- Fatalities
- 0
- Total incidents
- 3
- Years on record
- 2010–2011
- Latest incident
- Dec 2011
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2010
70
significant & substantial
$52,060
proposed penalties
68% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $16,544 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2009
18.7
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.
269 citations across 1,439 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
No 3 has $52K in proposed MSHA penalties and $17K 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.
260 assessments are final orders; 1 contested dockets.
Of $29K in penalties contested before the Commission, $8K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2012-09-13.
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.
26.9%
significant & substantial
4.2%
high negligence or reckless
26.9%
reasonably likely or greater
6.2%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 3.1% low, 92.7% moderate, 4.2% 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.
14
citations taken to the federal commission · 5% of citations on record
-
Settled
13 · 93%
-
Vacated or withdrawn
1 · 7%
92%
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 12 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
73%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$29K proposed, $8K 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 2012-01-23.
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 2012-482 |
Settlement |
Gill |
2013 |
$29K → $8K |
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.
MSHA sampling at No 3 shows 87% of 67 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: 2012-09-26, 13 years ago
36 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 31 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
- CUTTING MACHINE OPERATOR32
- ROOF BOLTER (SINGLE HEAD)8
- SCOOP CAR OPERATOR7
Silica (quartz)
Last sampled: 2012-02-21, 14 years ago
Most-sampled occupations
- CUTTING MACHINE OPERATOR3
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: 2012-03-08, 14 years ago
Most-sampled occupations
- ROOF BOLTER (SINGLE HEAD)3
- BELT MAN/CONVEYOR MAN2
- CUTTING MACHINE OPERATOR2
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 |
| 2012 |
100% |
14 |
| 2011 |
83% |
46 |
| 2010 |
86% |
7 |
Silica (quartz) by year
| Year |
silica avg (%) |
samples |
| 2012 |
4.5 |
1 |
| 2011 |
1.7 |
2 |
| 2010 |
3.0 |
1 |
Noise by year
| Year |
over PEL |
samples |
| 2012 |
0% |
6 |
| 2011 |
0% |
2 |
| 2010 |
0% |
5 |
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, 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) |
| 2012 |
13 |
6,636 |
| 2011 |
20 |
42,594 |
| 2010 |
5 |
6,721 |
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.
No 3 sits in Knott County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 2.8% 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.
Knott County, Kentucky · Population 14,046
2.8%
Mining share of county employment
$37,736
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 |
| 2012 Q3 |
1,840 |
16 |
5 |
8695.7 |
| 2012 Q1 |
6,213 |
15 |
6 |
2414.3 |
| 2011 Q4 |
9,720 |
42 |
15 |
4321.0 |
| 2011 Q3 |
9,216 |
50 |
10 |
5425.3 |
| 2010 Q4 |
4,320 |
43 |
9 |
9953.7 |
| 2010 Q3 |
1,600 |
10 |
3 |
6250.0 |
| 2010 Q2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
No fatalities recorded at this mine.
Reportable incidents
3 on file
2011 · 2 incidents
December 3, 2011
KY · Coal
blaster, shooter, shotfirer, explosive worker, powder gang/monkey
POWERED HAULAGE
MRM Mining Inc · Caught in, under or between a moving and a stationary object
The accident occurred at 6:25 AM 12-3-11. the miner were hand rock dusting the outby area when the scoop bucket crushed the victim between the scoop bucket and roof. the coal was 34 inches visibility was poor.
MRM Mining Inc · Struck by... (Not Elsewhere Classified)
EE was blast a rock with a hammer and the EE reached to grab the rock and his hand got hit while hammer was being swung to blast rock. Location of accident was at tailpiece.
2010 · 1 incident
November 24, 2010
KY · Coal
security guard, watchman
OTHER
Mac-Tech Inc · (Not Elsewhere Classified)
Night watchman experienced a heart attack sometime on 11/24/10 morning, before 5:30 AM.