Southern Indiana mining company to pay $110K for penalties related to safety violations

IL file photo

A southern Indiana mining company must pay $110,000 for unpaid civil penalties related to worker safety violations committed in Owen County.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana announced Monday that the U.S. Department of Justice had reached a consent judgment in federal court with Eagle Stone, Inc.

“When employers avoid their legal obligations, the U.S. Department of Labor will use its enforcement powers to hold them accountable,” said Seema Nanda, the DOL’s solicitor of Labor, in a news release. “We are pleased to partner with the Department of Justice in implementing vigorous enforcement strategies to ensure that mine operators are held accountable when they cut corners on mine safety and health.”

According to court records, between 2019 and 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration imposed several civil penalties against Eagle Stone, Inc. after the company was found in violation of worker safety requirements at its Gosport Stone operation.

Gosport Stone is a crushed limestone mining operation owned by Eagle Stone.

The MSHA proposed civil penalties between February 2019 and December 2021 for more than 100 safety violations at Gosport Stone.

These violations included having faulty brakes on vehicles, unsafe storage practices for hazardous chemicals, and failing to insulate electrical wiring.

Eagle Stone stopped operating around 2022 and no longer has employees with the company.

In 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice and Department of Labor sued the company for unpaid penalties and interest.

This decision is the result of that lawsuit.

“Miners and other professionals in the field deserve a safe workplace as they do important jobs of our communities and our economy,” said Zachary Myers, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, in the release. “When companies disregard safety standards, they must be held accountable.”