According to a US Securities and Exchange Commission filing late last week, the Jim Walter Resources No. 7 operation in Tuscaloosa County was given the citation February 14.

The order indicated that a cavity in the roof of the entry to a mining section allowed methane levels to reach 5.6%. The void measured about 10 feet in width by 15ft in length with a smaller cavity in the very top measuring 3ft in diameter by 18 inches in depth, MSHA said.

JWR said it immediately removed power from the section and withdrew all miners except those needed to improve ventilation. After ventilation controls were improved and methane levels decreased, the agency terminated the order.

No injuries resulted from the condition, the company added. It did not issue any further public statement on the order.

Imminent danger orders are issued by MSHA under section 107(a) of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act, also known as the Mine Act.

Section 1503 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street and Consumer Protection Act, amended last July, now requires disclosure of all imminent danger incidents as part of new reporting requirements regarding mine safety.

The No. 7 operation employs about 700 workers and extracts from the Blue Creek coal seam at an average height of 80 inches via two longwall panels and five continuous miner sections.