Mining Incidents

Topaz Dome: 4 MSHA citations Metal/Non-Metal

Delta, Juab County, UT  ·  Abandoned
MSHA Mine ID: 4202664

Topaz Dome has $3K in proposed MSHA penalties and $2K outstanding across 3 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
1
Years on record
2016
Latest incident
Sep 2016
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2016
4
citations
3
significant & substantial
$2,532
proposed penalties
$0
paid to date
0% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $2,532 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2016
3
inspections on record
101
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: 101 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Topaz Dome has $3K in proposed MSHA penalties and $2K outstanding across 3 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.
$3K
proposed penalties
$2K
current assessed
$0
paid to date
$2K
outstanding
3 assessments are final orders; 3 contested dockets.
Of $6K in penalties contested before the Commission, $0 was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2017-04-04.
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.
75.0%
significant & substantial
50.0%
high negligence or reckless
75.0%
reasonably likely or greater
75.0%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 0.0% low, 50.0% moderate, 50.0% 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.
4 citations taken to the federal commission · 100% of citations on record
  • Stood as issued 1 · 25%
  • Vacated or withdrawn 3 · 75%
0%
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 1 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
100%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$6K proposed, $0 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 2017-06-12.
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
WEST 2017-0408 Withdrawal Manning 2017 $6K → $0
WEST 2017-0491 Withdrawal Manning 2017 $232 → $0
WEST 2017-0409 Dismissal Manning 2017 $116 → $0
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.
Ownership history
  1. Topaz Mountain Adventures 2016 to present
Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.
Workforce and production
Year Employees
2017 1
2016 1
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Topaz Dome sits in Juab County, Utah, where the Census mining category is 1.2% 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.
Juab County, Utah · Population 12,273
1.2%
Mining share of county employment
$89,803
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
2017 Q2 30 3 3 100000.0
2017 Q1 0 0 0
2016 Q4 0 1 0
2016 Q3 56 0 0 0.0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

1 on file

2016 · 1 incident

September 23, 2016 UT · Metal/Non-Metal laborer, blacksmith, bull gang, parts runner, roustabout, pick-up man, pitman EXPLOSIVES AND BREAKING AGENTS
Topaz Mountain Adventures · Struck by flying object

An unplanned ignition of explosives materials occurred. Two miners did not leave the blasting area prior to attaching an initiating device. This resulted in a minor fracture of the sternum and a fractured right sinus of one miner.