Varnell Pit: 39 MSHA citations Metal/Non-Metal
Varnell Pit has $11K in proposed MSHA penalties and $242 outstanding across 1 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 2014
39
citations
11
significant & substantial
$11,479
proposed penalties
$11,237
paid to date
98% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $242 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2014
17
inspections on record
170
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: 170 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Varnell Pit has $11K in proposed MSHA penalties and $242 outstanding across 1 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.$11K
proposed penalties
$11K
current assessed
$11K
paid to date
$242
outstanding
37 assessments are final orders; 1 contested dockets.
Of $3K in penalties contested before the Commission, $3K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2023-08-14.
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.29.7%
significant & substantial
35.1%
high negligence or reckless
29.7%
reasonably likely or greater
48.6%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 0.0% low, 64.9% moderate, 35.1% 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 · 10% of citations on record
- Settled 4 · 100%
100%
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 2 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
0%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$3K 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 2017-12-13.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CENT 2018-0068 | Settlement | Lesnick | 2018 | $3K → $3K |
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.
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.Metal and nonmetal contaminants (personal samples)
ⓘ
Many samples are screening measurements of substances with no applicable exposure limit; they are counted as samples but excluded from every over-limit figure. Over-limit shares use only limit-tested samples.
Last sampled: 2017-11-29, 8 years ago
ⓘ
Many samples are screening measurements of substances with no applicable exposure limit; they are counted as samples but excluded from every over-limit figure. Over-limit shares use only limit-tested samples.83%
of limit-tested samples over the exposure limit
6
samples
6
limit-tested
Most sampled contaminants
- Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz65 over
Show the individual readings (6)
| Date | Contaminant | Concentration | Limit | Conc / limit | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-11-29 | Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz | 0.94 | 0.29 | 3.24 | Stone Polisher/Cutter |
| 2017-11-29 | Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz | 0.34 | 0.34 | 1.00 | Stone Polisher/Cutter |
| 2017-09-19 | Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz | 0.51 | 0.32 | 1.59 | Stone Polisher/Cutter |
| 2017-09-19 | Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz | 0.58 | 0.49 | 1.18 | Bobcat Operator |
| 2017-09-19 | Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz | 0.33 | 0.33 | 1.00 | Laborer, Bullgang |
| 2017-09-19 | Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz | 0.22 | 0.27 | 0.81 | Laborer, Bullgang |
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly. Metal/nonmetal contaminant figures come from MSHA's Personal Health Samples and Area Samples files (public record), updated weekly.
Ownership history
- Oklahoma Natural Stone and Hardscapes 2014 to present
Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.
Workforce and production
| Year | Employees |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 4 |
| 2018 | 2 |
| 2017 | 6 |
| 2016 | 6 |
| 2015 | 3 |
| 2014 | 3 |
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.
Varnell Pit sits in Latimer County, Oklahoma, where the Census mining category is 5.6% 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.Latimer County, Oklahoma · Population 9,495
5.6%
Mining share of county employment
$41,048
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 Q3 | 825 | 2 | 1 | 2424.2 |
| 2019 Q2 | 2,198 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2019 Q1 | 2,009 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2018 Q4 | 786 | 2 | 1 | 2544.5 |
| 2018 Q3 | 727 | 1 | 0 | 1375.5 |
| 2018 Q2 | 987 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2018 Q1 | 1,140 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2017 Q4 | 1,278 | 5 | 0 | 3912.4 |
Show 14 earlier quarters Hide earlier quarters
| Quarter | Hours worked | Citations | S&S | Per 1M hrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 Q3 | 2,882 | 5 | 3 | 1734.9 |
| 2017 Q2 | 3,247 | 7 | 2 | 2155.8 |
| 2017 Q1 | 2,780 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2016 Q4 | 1,680 | 5 | 1 | 2976.2 |
| 2016 Q3 | 3,565 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2016 Q2 | 1,244 | 2 | 2 | 1607.7 |
| 2016 Q1 | 1,224 | 3 | 1 | 2451.0 |
| 2015 Q4 | 902 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2015 Q3 | 1,021 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2015 Q2 | 976 | 1 | 0 | 1024.6 |
| 2015 Q1 | 972 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2014 Q4 | 1,109 | 1 | 0 | 901.7 |
| 2014 Q3 | 1,284 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2014 Q2 | 1,016 | 3 | 0 | 2952.8 |
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.