Nearly 200 Citations Issued During MSHA January Mine Inspections

Federal impact inspections at U.S. mines in January resulted in 198 citations and 11 orders.

The Mine Safety and Health Administration conducted the inspections at 11 coal mines and three metal and nonmetal mines in Alabama, Colorado, Indiana, Kentucky, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia.

The agency said Thursday that Baylor Mining Inc. implemented a corrective action plan for its Beckley Crystal Mine in West Virginia and improved a ventilation plan following the operation’s first impact inspection. Baylor received seven citations for ventilation, electrical and health violations, along with four unwarranted failure orders and an order for failure to abate a hazardous condition in a timely manner.

The inspections began in 2010 after the Upper Big Branch Mine explosion in West Virginia that killed 29 coal miners.