By John T. Martin

August 7, 2019 - A coal mine closure in Gibson County, Indiana will impact about 120 jobs.

Somerville Mine is to shut down in early October. The mine in the Oakland City area is operated by Peabody Indiana Services LLC.

Coal mines in the region have faced an unfavorable economic climate for months; operations at Liberty Mine in Warrick County ceased in April, eliminating about 80 jobs.

A Peabody communications official sent this statement to the Courier & Press about the Somerville Mine closure:

"Employees at Peabody’s Somerville Mine in Gibson County, Indiana have been notified of workforce reductions based on the ending of mining operations scheduled for early October. The mine will transition into a final reclamation phase.

"While we’ve made the difficult decision to suspend production at our Somerville Mine, we expect no impacts to our Illinois Basin production targets based on transitioning contracts to other Peabody operations. We also are working to minimize employee impacts and anticipate offering job opportunities to many of those affected.

"Somerville Mine opened in 2000 and sold approximately 2 million tons of coal to customers in 2018 and has been operating at a reduced rate in 2019. The mine will continue to safely produce coal to meet customer needs over the next 60 days.

"We recognize the hardship this closure will cause to employees and families and are working with impacted employees to identify comparable employment opportunities at four locations in Indiana and Illinois. Outplacement assistance and counseling will be available for employees who do not seek an alternate opportunity with Peabody."

Gibson County Commissioners President Steve Bottoms said the news is difficult to hear.

"It's a sad day," Bottoms said. "I'm a retired coal miner myself. These are good people who are paid good wages. But thankfully, Gibson County is at a historic unemployment low. Many of these people will get other jobs. They don’t want that; they want to be coal miners. But their skills will transfer.

"But as a coal miner, I understand how they feel. It’s a sad thing. It affects their families."

The Princeton Daily Clarion first reported the news of the closure.