Sturgeon Mining Co., Inc. · Accident type, without injuries
At approximately 5:20PM on 06/26/23 night watchman notified shift foreman that truck was on fire and foreman came back and extinguished fire.
Sturgeon Freeman Fork Coal
Sturgeon Mining Co., Inc.
· Surface
Controlled by
Robert L Rosencrans
Buckhorn,
Breathitt County,
KY
·
Active
MSHA Mine ID: 1518982
Sturgeon Freeman Fork has $229K in proposed MSHA penalties and $5K outstanding across 39 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.
Watch this mine
Email me when a new MSHA incident is filed at Sturgeon Freeman Fork.
- Fatalities
- 0
- Total incidents
- 4
- Years on record
- 2008–2023
- Latest incident
- Jun 2023
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2006
552
citations
160
significant & substantial
$229,449
proposed penalties
$152,980
paid to date
67% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $76,469 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2006
77
inspections on record
4,309
inspection hours
12.8
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.552 citations across 4,309 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Sturgeon Freeman Fork has $229K in proposed MSHA penalties and $5K outstanding across 39 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.$229K
proposed penalties
$158K
current assessed
$153K
paid to date
$5K
outstanding
538 assessments are final orders; 39 contested dockets.
As of the most recent assessment on 2026-05-12.
Source: MSHA assessed-violations and conference/litigation data, updated weekly.
See also
the operator's enforcement record
MSHA sampling at Sturgeon Freeman Fork shows respirable coal dust averaging 0.21 mg/m3 (99% compliant) across 375 samples.
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.0.21
dust avg (mg/m3)
4.66
dust max (mg/m3)
99%
within 1.5 mg/m3
375
samples
Most recent sample: 2026-06-19.
Silica (quartz)
9.8
silica avg (%)
46.6
silica max (%)
39
samples
Most recent sample: 2026-03-03.
Noise
4%
over PEL
193
samples
Most recent sample: 2026-02-20.
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Q4 | 749 | 1 | 0 | 1335.1 |
| 2025 Q3 | 624 | 22 | 6 | 35256.4 |
| 2025 Q2 | 277 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2025 Q1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2024 Q4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2024 Q3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2024 Q2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2024 Q1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Show 71 earlier quarters Hide earlier quarters
| Quarter | Hours worked | Citations | S&S | Per 1M hrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 Q4 | 1,296 | 6 | 5 | 4629.6 |
| 2023 Q3 | 1,831 | 3 | 0 | 1638.4 |
| 2023 Q2 | 2,237 | 14 | 3 | 6258.4 |
| 2023 Q1 | 6,663 | 4 | 2 | 600.3 |
| 2022 Q4 | 6,614 | 4 | 1 | 604.8 |
| 2022 Q3 | 7,571 | 8 | 1 | 1056.7 |
| 2022 Q2 | 6,688 | 18 | 3 | 2691.4 |
| 2022 Q1 | 5,476 | 1 | 1 | 182.6 |
| 2021 Q4 | 5,422 | 8 | 1 | 1475.5 |
| 2021 Q3 | 2,351 | 7 | 1 | 2977.5 |
| 2021 Q2 | 2,433 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2021 Q1 | 309 | 5 | 0 | 16181.2 |
| 2020 Q4 | 1,070 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2020 Q3 | 1,341 | 1 | 0 | 745.7 |
| 2020 Q2 | 2,270 | 13 | 3 | 5726.9 |
| 2019 Q4 | 4,931 | 8 | 1 | 1622.4 |
| 2019 Q3 | 3,947 | 1 | 0 | 253.4 |
| 2019 Q2 | 3,443 | 8 | 1 | 2323.6 |
| 2019 Q1 | 3,453 | 10 | 2 | 2896.0 |
| 2018 Q4 | 2,983 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2018 Q3 | 2,320 | 6 | 1 | 2586.2 |
| 2018 Q2 | 1,973 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2018 Q1 | 1,691 | 4 | 0 | 2365.5 |
| 2017 Q4 | 2,056 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2017 Q3 | 1,650 | 4 | 0 | 2424.2 |
| 2017 Q2 | 2,092 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2017 Q1 | 2,061 | 1 | 0 | 485.2 |
| 2016 Q4 | 4,542 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2016 Q3 | 5,598 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2016 Q2 | 6,140 | 3 | 1 | 488.6 |
| 2016 Q1 | 4,119 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2015 Q4 | 4,546 | 10 | 1 | 2199.7 |
| 2015 Q3 | 1,046 | 1 | 0 | 956.0 |
| 2015 Q2 | 1,655 | 30 | 12 | 18126.9 |
| 2015 Q1 | 640 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2014 Q4 | 3,374 | 23 | 4 | 6816.8 |
| 2014 Q3 | 3,923 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2014 Q2 | 3,868 | 27 | 2 | 6980.4 |
| 2014 Q1 | 1,924 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2013 Q4 | 4,105 | 28 | 2 | 6821.0 |
| 2013 Q3 | 3,506 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2013 Q2 | 1,280 | 14 | 2 | 10937.5 |
| 2013 Q1 | 181 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2012 Q4 | 3,900 | 13 | 3 | 3333.3 |
| 2012 Q3 | 3,873 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2012 Q2 | 3,981 | 2 | 1 | 502.4 |
| 2012 Q1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2011 Q4 | 5,679 | 53 | 17 | 9332.6 |
| 2011 Q3 | 8,114 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2011 Q2 | 7,020 | 6 | 2 | 854.7 |
| 2011 Q1 | 7,389 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2010 Q4 | 7,696 | 25 | 11 | 3248.4 |
| 2010 Q3 | 8,778 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2010 Q2 | 7,728 | 34 | 13 | 4399.6 |
| 2010 Q1 | 2,071 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2009 Q4 | 1,920 | 4 | 0 | 2083.3 |
| 2009 Q3 | 1,256 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2009 Q2 | 129 | 7 | 4 | 54263.6 |
| 2009 Q1 | 6,791 | 1 | 1 | 147.3 |
| 2008 Q4 | 4,865 | 15 | 7 | 3083.2 |
| 2008 Q3 | 5,147 | 24 | 10 | 4662.9 |
| 2008 Q2 | 5,717 | 3 | 1 | 524.8 |
| 2008 Q1 | 5,707 | 21 | 4 | 3679.7 |
| 2007 Q4 | 7,507 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2007 Q3 | 3,617 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2007 Q2 | 3,614 | 18 | 12 | 4980.6 |
| 2007 Q1 | 3,520 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2006 Q4 | 1,768 | 17 | 9 | 9615.4 |
| 2006 Q3 | 3,108 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2006 Q2 | 1,570 | 11 | 7 | 7006.4 |
| 2006 Q1 | 3,900 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
No fatalities recorded at this mine.
Reportable incidents
4 on file2023 · 1 incident
2014 · 1 incident
September 17, 2014
KY · Coal
greaser, grease man, oiler, lube man, dragline oiler
SLIP OR FALL OF PERSON
Sturgeon Mining Co., Inc. · Fall to the walkway or working surface
Employee greasing fitting, stepped back. Foot hit ladder on truck. Dropped to ground. Bruised left leg.
2010 · 1 incident
March 29, 2010
KY · Coal
maintenance man, mechanic, repair/serviceman, boilermaker, fueler, tire tech, field service tech
OTHER
Sturgeon Mining Co., Inc. · Bodily reaction, (Not Elsewhere Classified)
EE was replacing valve body in D-10 dozer. Twisted body. Strained lower pelvic area.
2008 · 1 incident
Sturgeon Mining Co., Inc. · Caught in, under or between (Not Elsewhere Classified)
Man pinned between back bumper of the blasting truck and front bumper. The driver of pickup stated his foot slipped off of the brake and hit the accelator causing the truck to pin the victim between the bumpers.
For insurers, brokers, and safety consultants
The full compliance file on Sturgeon Freeman Fork
A dated report covering the 26-year penalty trail, line-item violation pattern, contest and docket posture, rate-normalized peer benchmark, and full fatality history. Delivered as a PDF with the underlying data as CSV.