Patton Mining LLC · Caught in, under or between a moving and a stationary object
The IE was moving the miner to the face in entry #3 when we found the IE pinned between the miner tail and the solid rib.
Patton Mining LLC: 1 recorded fatality operator
Controlled by
Foresight Energy Labor LLC
MSHA operator ID: 0098785
Watch this operator
Email me when a new MSHA incident is filed at any Patton Mining LLC mine.
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2009
1,369
citations
286
significant & substantial
$2,117,510
proposed penalties
$1,189,485
paid to date
56% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $928,025 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2009
370
inspections on record
26,635
inspection hours
5.1
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.1,369 citations across 26,635 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Penalty disposition
ⓘ
Differences between proposed and paid penalties reflect both settlements and conference reductions and amounts still owed. Outstanding is the balance currently owed.$2.1M
proposed penalties
$1.5M
current assessed
$1.2M
paid to date
$288K
outstanding
1,281 assessments are final orders; 76 contested dockets.
Of $1.3M in penalties contested before the Commission, $622K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2026-07-08.
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.21.3%
significant & substantial
7.8%
high negligence or reckless
21.2%
reasonably likely or greater
29.9%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.1% none, 10.4% low, 81.8% moderate, 7.8% high, 0.0% reckless.
Source: MSHA violations gravity and negligence coding, updated weekly.
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.7.03
total case rate
6.53
days-away rate
0.000
fatality rate
Above average. The US coal mining average was 3.19 and the all-US-mining average was 1.97 cases per 100 workers.
| Year | total case rate | days-away | fatal |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 13.00 | 9.75 | 1.084 |
| 2025 | 7.03 | 6.53 | 0.000 |
| 2024 | 14.68 | 9.96 | 0.000 |
| 2023 | 13.08 | 7.94 | 0.000 |
| 2022 | 13.10 | 9.22 | 0.000 |
| 2021 | 14.64 | 11.15 | 0.000 |
| 2020 | 9.38 | 5.21 | 0.000 |
| 2019 | 1.91 | 0.00 | 0.000 |
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.
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: 2026-08-19
ⓘ
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.98%
within 1.5 mg/m3
4,346
samples
5.51
dust max (mg/m3)
13
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.988 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 3,358 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
- CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR914
- ROOF BOLTER (TWIN HEAD) (RETURN SIDE)610
- LONGWALL OPERATOR (TAILGATE SIDE)464
Silica (quartz)
Last sampled: 2026-08-183.5
silica avg (%)
323
samples
11.8
silica max (%)
Most-sampled occupations
- CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR65
- SHUTTLE CAR OPERATOR (STANDARD SIDE)62
- ROOF BOLTER (TWIN HEAD) (RETURN SIDE)51
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: 2026-08-12
ⓘ
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.15%
over PEL
289
samples
Most-sampled occupations
- CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR30
- SHUTTLE CAR OPERATOR (STANDARD SIDE)28
- MECHANIC26
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, 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.
173
citations taken to the federal commission · 13% of citations on record
- Settled 144 · 83%
- Stood as issued 4 · 2%
- Still open 25 · 14%
86%
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 110 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
51%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$1.3M proposed, $622K 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 2026-07-08. Vacated and withdrawn citations are removed from the file this view attributes through, so that outcome is slightly undercounted here.
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 operator contested before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, with the outcome on record.
| Docket | Decision | Judge | Year | Proposed / upheld |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAKE 2015-0456 | Settlement | Miller | 2018 | $192K → $92K |
| LAKE 2024-0184 | Settlement | Bulluck | 2025 | $177K → $86K |
| LAKE 2021-0197 | Settlement | Manning | 2022 | $88K → $45K |
| LAKE 2023-0098 | Settlement | Bulluck | 2025 | $86K → $43K |
| LAKE 2023-0212 | Settlement | Paez | 2024 | $86K → $45K |
| LAKE 2015-0687 | Settlement | Miller | 2016 | $50K → $25K |
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.
Top causes
- MACHINERY 1 fatality · 34 non-fatal
- HANDLING OF MATERIALS 87 non-fatal
- SLIP OR FALL OF PERSON 36 non-fatal
- HANDTOOLS (NONPOWERED) 27 non-fatal
- FALL OF ROOF OR BACK 18 non-fatal
- POWERED HAULAGE 6 non-fatal
Incident timeline
2026
12 (1f)
2025
18
2024
29
2023
31
2022
32
2021
21
2020
9
2019
2
2018
1
2017
2
2015
4
2014
17
2013
19
2012
15
2011
9
2010
10
2009
1
Mines on record
Fatalities under this operator
1 recordedFor insurers, brokers, and safety consultants
Where Patton Mining LLC stands on silica, penalties, and injury rate
MSHA's standard limits respirable silica to 50 micrograms per cubic metre, but MSHA publishes dust and quartz as separate files and never the silica figure itself. We derive it per sample, score it against the limit, and set the operator's injury rate against a benchmark built from the full MSHA operator record. With the 26-year penalty trail, contest posture, and fatality history. Delivered as a PDF with the underlying data as CSV.
The federal record itself stays free on this site. What costs money, and why.