Sewell Mine R has $245K in proposed MSHA penalties and $25K outstanding across 38 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.
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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
2
Years on record
2017–2020
Latest incident
Feb 2020
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2013
666
citations
115
significant & substantial
$245,454
proposed penalties
$162,152
paid to date
66% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $83,301 gap.
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.
666 citations across 4,984 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Sewell Mine R has $245K in proposed MSHA penalties and $25K outstanding across 38 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.
$245K
proposed penalties
$187K
current assessed
$162K
paid to date
$25K
outstanding
652 assessments are final orders; 38 contested dockets.
Of $147K in penalties contested before the Commission, $89K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2026-04-08.
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.
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.
174citations taken to the federal commission · 26% of citations on record
Settled
168 · 97%
Stood as issued
3 · 2%
Still open
3 · 2%
80%
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 Vacated and withdrawn citations, and settlements that removed the designation, count against.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 66 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
40%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$147K proposed, $89K 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 2026-05-24.
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.
MSHA sampling at Sewell Mine R shows 99% of 971 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: 2026-03-05
99%
within 1.5 mg/m3
971
samples
8.85
dust max (mg/m3)
3
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.
267 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 704 by the operator.
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.
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.
Sewell Mine R recorded 0.00 reportable injury cases per 100 full-time workers in 2025.
Injury rate, 2025
ⓘ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
No reportable injury cases in any year shown. Employee-hours were reported in each of those years, so these are true zeros rather than missing data. Citations, listed in the compliance record above, are inspector-found violations and are counted separately from worker injuries.
Below average. The US coal mining average was 3.19 and the all-US-mining average was 1.97 cases per 100 workers.
In West Virginia, coal mining averaged 3.89 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
2025 *
0.00
0.00
0.000
2024 *
0.00
0.00
0.000
2023 *
0.00
0.00
0.000
2022 *
0.00
0.00
0.000
2021 *
0.00
0.00
0.000
2019 *
0.00
0.00
0.000
2018 *
0.00
0.00
0.000
2015 *
0.00
0.00
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.
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)
2026
5
8,804
2025
13
26,101
2024
15
91,502
2023
14
82,116
2022
14
94,912
2021
12
99,783
2020
12
35,342
2019
12
82,004
2018
12
64,839
2017
4
15,761
2016
3
6,509
2015
12
56,751
2014
14
66,107
2013
10
48,745
2012
5
7,907
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.
Sewell Mine R 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
2026 Q2
0
2
0
2026 Q1
5,101
13
8
2548.5
2025 Q4
8,027
14
5
1744.1
2025 Q3
7,154
16
4
2236.5
2025 Q2
5,531
1
1
180.8
2025 Q1
9,660
3
0
310.6
2024 Q4
10,041
12
2
1195.1
2024 Q3
10,502
15
2
1428.3
Show 48 earlier quartersHide earlier quarters
Quarter
Hours worked
Citations
S&S
Per 1M hrs
2024 Q2
10,047
0
0
0.0
2024 Q1
10,899
7
0
642.3
2023 Q4
9,023
7
2
775.8
2023 Q3
9,316
15
2
1610.1
2023 Q2
9,227
12
1
1300.5
2023 Q1
10,577
24
5
2269.1
2022 Q4
9,878
15
2
1518.5
2022 Q3
9,005
9
1
999.4
2022 Q2
9,370
7
0
747.1
2022 Q1
9,964
17
0
1706.1
2021 Q4
8,922
11
1
1232.9
2021 Q3
8,166
20
2
2449.2
2021 Q2
8,582
24
2
2796.6
2021 Q1
10,175
22
0
2162.2
2020 Q4
2,944
0
0
0.0
2020 Q3
304
1
0
3289.5
2020 Q2
5,633
14
2
2485.4
2020 Q1
7,935
21
3
2646.5
2019 Q4
6,962
25
3
3590.9
2019 Q3
7,601
13
1
1710.3
2019 Q2
8,385
18
2
2146.7
2019 Q1
8,961
16
6
1785.5
2018 Q4
8,447
2
0
236.8
2018 Q3
6,639
27
3
4066.9
2018 Q2
9,194
15
3
1631.5
2018 Q1
7,079
30
9
4237.9
2017 Q4
5,863
14
2
2387.9
2017 Q3
1,865
0
0
0.0
2017 Q2
480
0
0
0.0
2017 Q1
0
0
0
2016 Q4
0
0
0
2016 Q3
0
1
0
2016 Q2
0
0
0
2016 Q1
4,129
7
0
1695.3
2015 Q4
7,188
7
0
973.8
2015 Q3
7,803
13
7
1666.0
2015 Q2
8,337
22
3
2638.8
2015 Q1
4,100
0
0
0.0
2014 Q4
7,577
45
9
5939.0
2014 Q3
8,444
19
6
2250.1
2014 Q2
8,121
15
5
1847.1
2014 Q1
6,354
19
0
2990.2
2013 Q4
0
0
0
2013 Q3
2,677
5
0
1867.8
2013 Q2
9,897
30
5
3031.2
2013 Q1
8,449
7
1
828.5
2012 Q4
3,110
0
0
0.0
2012 Q3
0
0
0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.
Reportable incidents
2 on file
2020 · 1 incident
February 13, 2020WV · Coallaborer, bull gang, parts runner, roustabout, roof trimmer/scalerHANDTOOLS (NONPOWERED)