Mining Incidents
Search Operators Mines Alerts Research Controllers Fatalgrams About
English Español
← Back to search

S-28 Lewis Creek: 98 MSHA citations Coal

Blackjewel L.L.C. · Surface
Controlled by Jeffery A Hoops
Napier, Leslie County, KY  ·  Abandoned and Sealed
MSHA Mine ID: 1519161

S-28 Lewis Creek has $25K in proposed MSHA penalties and $7K outstanding across 6 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

Watch this mine

Email me when a new MSHA incident is filed at S-28 Lewis Creek.

Fatalities
0
Total incidents
2
Years on record
2008–2018
Latest incident
Mar 2018
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2008
98
citations
29
significant & substantial
$24,547
proposed penalties
$16,582
paid to date
68% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $7,965 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
See Blackjewel L.L.C.'s full MSHA compliance history →
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2008
43
inspections on record
1,654
inspection hours
5.9
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.
98 citations across 1,654 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

S-28 Lewis Creek has $25K in proposed MSHA penalties and $7K outstanding across 6 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.
$25K
proposed penalties
$24K
current assessed
$17K
paid to date
$7K
outstanding
85 assessments are final orders; 6 contested dockets.
Of $4K in penalties contested before the Commission, $3K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2018-05-08.
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.
31.5%
significant & substantial
2.2%
high negligence or reckless
31.5%
reasonably likely or greater
6.5%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 39.1% low, 58.7% moderate, 2.2% 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.
21 citations taken to the federal commission · 21% of citations on record
  • Settled 21 · 100%
67%
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 3 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
20%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$4K proposed, $3K 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 2019-03-20.
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 2017-0075 Settlement Bulluck 2017 $1K → $1K
KENT 2018-0068 Settlement Miller 2018 $1K → $1K
KENT 2018-0205 Settlement Miller 2018 $589 → $118
KENT 2018-0330 Settlement McCarthy 2018 $472 → $472
KENT 2018-0289 Settlement Miller 2018 $236 → $236
KENT 2019-0185 Settlement Manning 2019 $154 → $154
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at S-28 Lewis Creek shows 100% of 73 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: 2019-04-22, 7 years ago
100%
within 1.5 mg/m3
73
samples
0.84
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.
50 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 23 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • BULLDOZER OPERATOR26
  • HIGHWALL DRILL OPERATOR20
  • REFUSE TRUCK DRIVER/BACKFILL TRUCK DRIVE10

Silica (quartz)

Last sampled: 2018-01-25, 8 years ago
21.9
silica avg (%)
4
samples
44.0
silica max (%)
Most-sampled occupations
  • BULLDOZER OPERATOR2
  • HIGHWALL DRILL OPERATOR2
See US coal mines ranked by silica in their dust samples.

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: 2018-05-15, 8 years ago
0%
over PEL
49
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • BULLDOZER OPERATOR11
  • REFUSE TRUCK DRIVER/BACKFILL TRUCK DRIVE10
  • HIGHLIFT OPERATOR/FRONT END LOADER9
See US mines ranked by noise samples over the legal limit.
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
2019 100% 2
2018 100% 12
2017 100% 23
2016 100% 11
2012 100% 5
2011 100% 5
2009 100% 5
2008 100% 10
Silica (quartz) by year
Year silica avg (%) samples
2018 37.3 1
2017 16.7 3
Noise by year
Year over PEL samples
2018 0% 5
2017 0% 15
2016 0% 5
2012 0% 5
2011 0% 5
2009 0% 5
2008 0% 9
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.

S-28 Lewis Creek recorded 3.27 reportable injury cases per 100 full-time workers in 2018.

Injury rate, 2018
ⓘ 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.
3.27
total case rate
3.27
days-away rate
0.000
fatality rate
About average. The US coal mining average was 3.34 and the all-US-mining average was 2.33 cases per 100 workers.
In Kentucky, coal mining averaged 3.81 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
2018 * 3.27 3.27 0.000
2017 * 0.00 0.00 0.000
2016 * 0.00 0.00 0.000
2012 * 0.00 0.00 0.000
2011 * 0.00 0.00 0.000
2009 * 0.00 0.00 0.000
2008 * 3.24 3.24 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. James River Coal Service Company 2007 to 2015
  2. Blackjewel L.L.C. 2015 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)
2019 5
2018 30 130,083
2017 23 230,568
2016 15 172,630
2015 0
2014 0
2013 0
2012 12 19,503
2011 11 23,512
2010 0
2009 11 46,894
2008 23 114,251
2007 0
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

S-28 Lewis Creek sits in Leslie County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 10.6% 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.
Leslie County, Kentucky · Population 10,261
10.6%
Mining share of county employment
$40,176
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
2019 Q1 2,413 0 0 0.0
2018 Q4 4,788 0 0 0.0
2018 Q3 14,375 0 0 0.0
2018 Q2 21,786 4 0 183.6
2018 Q1 20,171 2 0 99.2
2017 Q4 20,171 9 0 446.2
2017 Q3 12,336 11 4 891.7
2017 Q2 15,636 0 0 0.0
Show 31 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2017 Q1 15,251 3 0 196.7
2016 Q4 14,715 2 1 135.9
2016 Q3 13,722 14 4 1020.3
2016 Q2 13,102 20 6 1526.5
2016 Q1 803 0 0 0.0
2015 Q4 0 0 0
2014 Q3 0 0 0
2014 Q2 0 0 0
2014 Q1 0 0 0
2013 Q4 0 0 0
2013 Q3 0 0 0
2013 Q2 0 4 1
2013 Q1 0 0 0
2012 Q4 7,138 0 0 0.0
2012 Q3 3,906 0 0 0.0
2012 Q2 12,545 2 1 159.4
2012 Q1 19,389 0 0 0.0
2011 Q4 18,618 0 0 0.0
2011 Q3 4,142 0 0 0.0
2011 Q2 3,677 0 0 0.0
2011 Q1 3,040 0 0 0.0
2010 Q3 0 0 0
2009 Q4 0 0 0
2009 Q3 0 0 0
2009 Q2 10,403 4 3 384.5
2009 Q1 18,816 2 2 106.3
2008 Q4 18,929 4 3 211.3
2008 Q3 19,344 0 0 0.0
2008 Q2 17,502 0 0 0.0
2008 Q1 5,975 1 0 167.4
2007 Q4 0 0 0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

2 on file

2018 · 1 incident

March 6, 2018 KY · Coal grader operator, roadgrader operator SLIP OR FALL OF PERSON
Blackjewel L.L.C. · Fall onto or against objects

Employee was checking a drain pipe & fell on loose rock hitting knee and chest on a rock pile.

2008 · 1 incident

December 10, 2008 KY · Coal bulldozer operator, universal operator, heavy equipment operator, operating engineer MACHINERY
James River Coal Service Company · Struck against a moving object

Dozer was pushing material (rock/dirt) to a 992-G loader, the highwall fell with-out any warning. The operator had a cut/laceration to his forehead. Extensive damage was done to the dozer.