The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration says coal-mining related deaths have reached a record low in Kentucky where a single miner died last year. The Lexington Herald-Leader reports the agency said Jan. 8 that there were 12 deaths at …
Federal regulators have concluded that a Harlan County coal mine operator’s negligence resulted in a miner’s death earlier this year. A report issued by the Mine Safety and Health Administration found that Lone Mountain Processing’s Huff Creek No. 1 failed …
Kentucky’s mine-safety laws and regulations didn’t apply to a subcontract worker who died while installing a massive garage door on a building at a mine site in Muhlenberg County, the state’s Supreme Court ruled Oct. 29. David McCarty died when …
A former state mine inspector has pleaded guilty in federal court to taking bribes from former Kentucky lawmaker Keith Hall. Kelly Shortridge agreed to a plea that was filed in court on Wednesday. It says Shortridge, who worked for the …
A former Kentucky mine inspector indicted for taking bribes from a state lawmaker is now facing charges from the Executive Branch Ethics Commission. The commission charged Kelly Shortridge with four counts of violating state ethics laws for his part in …
West Virginia billionaire Jim Justice has reached a $1.5 million settlement with Kentucky officials over dozens of violations at several of his coal mines in eastern Kentucky. The agreement between Justice and the state’s Department for Natural Resources is a …
A budget cut in the state office that inspects the safety of mining sites is forcing a reduction in its staff. The Lexington Herald-Leader reported that the staff of 141 full-time positions at the Office of Mine Safety and Licensing …
Coal mines in Kentucky would be subject to fewer state inspections under the Senate’s budget proposal — a change that safety advocates say would raise the risk for miners, but one the plan’s proponents argue is justified given declining mining …
A longtime state mine inspector has resigned amid inquiries about whether he sought or accepted money from an eastern Kentucky lawmaker who owns coal mines. Kentucky Division of Mine Reclamation and Enforcement inspector Kelly Shortridge submitted a one-sentence resignation letter …
An influential eastern Kentucky legislator owns the permits on Pike County coal mines that have repeatedly been cited by the state for safety and environmental violations. Rep. Keith Hall’s Beech Creek Coal Co. and other companies that are mining coal …
