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Smoot Creek No. 1: 8 MSHA citations Coal

Smoky Quartz · Surface
Controlled by John T Quintrell
Whitesburg, Letcher County, KY  ·  Abandoned and Sealed
MSHA Mine ID: 1519560

Smoot Creek No. 1 has $935 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
0
Years on record
—
Latest incident
—
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2011
8
citations
0
significant & substantial
$935
proposed penalties
$935
paid to date
100% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $0 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
See Smoky Quartz's full MSHA compliance history →
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2011
7
inspections on record
162
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: 162 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Imminent-danger orders
ⓘ A Section 107(a) order removes miners from an area when an inspector finds an imminent danger. Each order is lifted once the condition is corrected, so this counts orders issued, not orders now in effect.
1
Section 107(a) orders
Most recent order: 2011-12-20.
On record since 2011.
Source: MSHA imminent-danger order records, updated weekly.

Smoot Creek No. 1 has $935 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.
$935
proposed penalties
$935
current assessed
$935
paid to date
$0
outstanding
7 assessments are final orders; 0 contested dockets.
As of the most recent assessment on 2011-12-20.
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.
0.0%
significant & substantial
0.0%
high negligence or reckless
14.3%
reasonably likely or greater
0.0%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 57.1% low, 42.9% moderate, 0.0% high, 0.0% reckless.
Source: MSHA violations gravity and negligence coding, updated weekly.

MSHA sampling at Smoot Creek No. 1 shows 100% of 12 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: 2011-12-13, 14 years ago
100%
within 1.5 mg/m3
12
samples
1.47
dust max (mg/m3)
12 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 0 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
  • BULLDOZER OPERATOR4
  • HIGHLIFT OPERATOR/FRONT END LOADER3
  • BLASTER/SHOOTER/SHOTFIRER2

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: 2011-08-04, 15 years ago
0%
over PEL
5
samples
Most-sampled occupations
  • BULLDOZER OPERATOR2
  • BLASTER/SHOOTER/SHOTFIRER1
  • HIGHLIFT OPERATOR/FRONT END LOADER1
See US mines ranked by noise samples over the legal limit.
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.
Ownership history
  1. Sapphire Coal Company 2011 to 2021
  2. Smoky Quartz 2021 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)
2016 0
2015 0
2014 1
2013 3
2012 7 7,512
2011 8 39,850
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Smoot Creek No. 1 sits in Letcher County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 3.5% 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.
Letcher County, Kentucky · Population 21,146
3.5%
Mining share of county employment
$40,501
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
2016 Q2 0 0 0
2016 Q1 0 0 0
2015 Q4 0 0 0
2015 Q3 0 0 0
2015 Q2 0 0 0
2015 Q1 0 0 0
2014 Q4 0 0 0
2014 Q3 0 0 0
Show 14 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2014 Q2 1,061 0 0 0.0
2014 Q1 0 0 0
2013 Q4 0 0 0
2013 Q3 120 0 0 0.0
2013 Q2 2,698 0 0 0.0
2013 Q1 2,828 0 0 0.0
2012 Q4 2,106 0 0 0.0
2012 Q3 0 0 0
2012 Q2 980 0 0 0.0
2012 Q1 5,574 0 0 0.0
2011 Q4 11,960 4 0 334.4
2011 Q3 6,153 3 0 487.6
2011 Q2 0 0 0
2011 Q1 0 0 0

No reportable incidents on file.

MSHA has no recorded reportable accidents for this mine in the current dataset. New reports appear here within a week of being filed.