# Bear Branch

- **MSHA mine ID:** 1519461
- **Status:** Abandoned
- **Type / commodity:** Surface / Coal (Bituminous)
- **Location:** Pike, KY
- **Operator:** Liberty Management, L.L.C.
- **Controller:** Steve  Allen; Philip  Marsh
- **Public source rows linked:** 280
- **Source coverage:** 16 / 20
- **Generated:** 2026-10-13T11:26:59.401Z

## Current entity hierarchy

**Steve  Allen; Philip  Marsh (0116941) → Liberty Management, L.L.C. (0137473) → Bear Branch (1519461)**

Current identity source: `msha-mines`. This is a current snapshot, not a historical claim.

## Controller and operator valid-time history

- **Gerald K  Thacker → TLT Resources Corporation:** 2010-01-19 through 2012-01-08; derived from co-tenure at mine 1519461; source `msha-controller-operator-history`.
- **William A  Stephens et al → Augustus Augering and Contracting Inc:** 2012-01-09 through 2014-08-04; derived from co-tenure at mine 1519461; source `msha-controller-operator-history`.
- **Jerry Keith  McPeek et al → Black Storm Energy, LLC:** 2014-08-05 through 2014-10-08; derived from co-tenure at mine 1519461; source `msha-controller-operator-history`.
- **Eric  McPeek et al → Black Storm Energy, LLC:** 2014-08-05 through 2014-10-08; derived from co-tenure at mine 1519461; source `msha-controller-operator-history`.
- **The IBCS Group Inc → IBCS Mining Inc KY Division:** 2014-10-09 through 2015-02-12; derived from co-tenure at mine 1519461; source `msha-controller-operator-history`.
- **Steve  Allen et al → Liberty Management, L.L.C.:** 2015-02-13 through current/open; derived from co-tenure at mine 1519461; source `msha-controller-operator-history`.
- **Philip  Marsh et al → Liberty Management, L.L.C.:** 2015-02-13 through current/open; derived from co-tenure at mine 1519461; source `msha-controller-operator-history`.
- **Melodye G  Stephens et al → Augustus Augering and Contracting Inc:** 2015-04-25 through 2014-08-04; derived from co-tenure at mine 1519461; source `msha-controller-operator-history`.
- **David A  Lester et al → Augustus Augering and Contracting Inc:** 2015-04-25 through 2014-08-04; derived from co-tenure at mine 1519461; source `msha-controller-operator-history`.
- **Karen A  Stephens et al → Augustus Augering and Contracting Inc:** 2015-04-25 through 2014-08-04; derived from co-tenure at mine 1519461; source `msha-controller-operator-history`.

- History rows: 10
- Typed edges: 21
- Interval anomalies: 3
- Valid-time bounds: inclusive; date granularity; null end means open-ended in the upstream history row; not independent proof of present control.
- Transaction-time observation: 2026-10-13T11:19:05.459773+00:00.

## Assessment signals

1. **SAFETY — 0 since 2021:** Accidents and injuries 0 historical accident/injury rows; 0 coded fatalities and 0 lost days across the published record.
2. **COMPLIANCE — 0 since 2021:** Violations and penalties 65 violation rows across the full record; 31 carry an S&S flag and $8,407 appears in current assessed amounts.
3. **HEALTH — 39 samples:** Occupational health samples 23 coal dust; 3 coal quartz; 13 noise. 0 personal-sample rows have a published C/E ratio above 1; 0 noise rows have an action-level or PEL dose above 100%. These are separate measures, not a silica exceedance count. Silica results and sample status are shown separately.
4. **PRODUCTION — 0 tons:** Quarterly production and employment 0 employee hours and 0 summed average employees across reported subunits in the latest published quarter.
5. **LEGAL — 29 linked rows:** Contests, conferences and decisions 7 contested-violation rows, 7 civil-penalty docket/decision rows, and 15 conference records linked by issuance number.
6. **CONTRACTORS — 2 linked entities:** Contractors Contractors are linked through this mine’s violation or accident records. Their production and hours cover all their operations, so they are not included in this mine’s totals.
7. **INSPECTIONS — 0 since 2021:** Inspections 30 inspection events and 428 published inspection hours across the historical record.

## EIA annual operating context

No matched record in the 2024 EIA coal-public workbook. This may be inapplicable for a non-coal operation.

## Recent Title 30 crosswalk

Snapshot current through 2026-08-19.

- **30 CFR 77.404 — Machinery and equipment; operation and maintenance.** (3 retained recent rows) — https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-30/chapter-I/subchapter-O/part-77/subpart-E/section-77.404
- **30 CFR 77.1605 — Loading and haulage equipment; installations.** (2 retained recent rows) — https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-30/chapter-I/subchapter-O/part-77/subpart-Q/section-77.1605
- **30 CFR 77.205 — Travelways at surface installations.** (2 retained recent rows) — https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-30/chapter-I/subchapter-O/part-77/subpart-C/section-77.205
- **30 CFR 77.1104 — Accumulations of combustible materials.** (3 retained recent rows) — https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-30/chapter-I/subchapter-O/part-77/subpart-L/section-77.1104
- **30 CFR 77.1606 — Loading and haulage equipment; inspection and maintenance.** (1 retained recent row) — https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-30/chapter-I/subchapter-O/part-77/subpart-Q/section-77.1606
- **30 CFR 77.1110 — Examination and maintenance of firefighting equipment.** (1 retained recent row) — https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-30/chapter-I/subchapter-O/part-77/subpart-L/section-77.1110

## Source coverage

- **Addresses of Record:** 1 rows; 2016-02-09 through 2016-02-09; source ID `msha-addresses`
- **Assessed Violations:** 65 rows; 2010-08-02 through 2015-09-23; source ID `msha-assessed-violations`
- **Civil Penalty Dockets and Decisions:** 7 rows; 2015-12-02 through 2015-12-02; source ID `msha-civil-penalty-dockets-decisions`
- **Coal Dust Samples:** 23 rows; 2012-03-23 through 2016-01-15; source ID `msha-coal-dust-samples`
- **Conferences:** 15 rows; 2015-12-09 through 2015-12-09; source ID `msha-conferences`
- **Contested Violations:** 7 rows; 2014-09-17 through 2014-09-30; source ID `msha-contested-violations`
- **Contractor Employment and Production — Quarterly:** 12 rows; unknown through unknown; source ID `msha-contractor-production-quarterly`
- **Contractor Employment and Production — Yearly:** 1 rows; unknown through unknown; source ID `msha-contractor-production-yearly`
- **Controller and Operator History:** 10 rows; 2010-01-19 through 2015-02-13; source ID `msha-controller-operator-history`
- **Inspections:** 30 rows; 2010-02-18 through 2016-01-13; source ID `msha-inspections`
- **Mine Employment and Production — Quarterly:** 23 rows; unknown through unknown; source ID `msha-mine-production-quarterly`
- **Mine Employment and Production — Yearly:** 4 rows; unknown through unknown; source ID `msha-mine-production-yearly`
- **Mines:** 1 rows; unknown through unknown; source ID `msha-mines`
- **Noise Samples:** 13 rows; 2012-08-29 through 2015-09-23; source ID `msha-noise-samples`
- **Quartz Samples — Coal:** 3 rows; 2012-03-23 through 2015-09-23; source ID `msha-quartz-samples`
- **Violations:** 65 rows; 2010-08-02 through 2015-09-23; source ID `msha-violations`

## Caveats

- This is public-record decision support, not legal advice or an official MSHA record.
- Missing data can indicate no event, publication delay, an unresolved identity, or inapplicability.
- Contractor production data is entity-level and is not attributed to this mine.

## Alternate representations

- HTML: `/mines/bear-branch-1519461`
- JSON: `/api/v1/mines/bear-branch-1519461`
- Silica records, units, sample status and quarterly means: `/api/v1/mines/1519461/silica` (snapshot year by default; `?year=all` for history; `&format=csv` for all matching rows)
- Relationship JSON: `/api/v1/mines/1519461/relationships`
- MCP resource: `mine://1519461/assessment`
- Complete Title 30 corpus: `/data/title30-sections.json`