MINERS ENTOMBED

Dominion, Volume 20, Issue 60, 4 December 1926, Page 10

MINERS ENTOMBED

EXPLOSIONS IN DOBSON COLLIERY THREE MEN KILLED HOPE OF SAVING FIVE OTHERS ABANDONED ONLY ONE SURVIVOR (“Dominion" Special) ; Grey mouth, December 3. The most shocking coal mining tragedy which has happened on the West Coast since the Brunner Disaster on March 26, 1896, occurred at the Dobson Mine at about 3.15 o’clock this morning, when two terrific explosions took 'place, trapping underground nine of the night shift men. One man was killed instantaneously, two died shortly afterwards, and Eric Ashton, the only survivor, lies in a critical condition in the Grey Hospital. The remaining five men, who were working in the dip section, are entombed in the burning mine, which was sealed up this afternoon in an effort to extinguish the flames. The .names of the victims - ’ " KILLED:' . JAMES RICHARDS, deputy, of Taylorville, unmarried. ROBERT HUNTER, winchman, Dobson, unmarried. JOHN LINDSAY, miner, Dobson,, unmarried. ENTOMBED: THOMAS BLACK, miner, married. JAMES MARSHALL, miner, married. ALRFED NOAKES, miner, married. ERNEST BRAMMER, miner, married. EDWARD PARDINGTON, miner, unmarried. The only survivor of the explosion this evening is Eric Ashton, formerly of Ashburton. He is about 26 years of age and unmarried.

’ James Richards, the deputy, who was Head when the rescue party reached him, resided with his mother in Taylorville. His father and uncle lost their lives in the Brunner mine disaster, and two of his brothers were killed in the war. Robert Hunter, who was brought m in a hopeless condition, died shortly after 6 o’clock this morning. He was about 21 years of age, and had been employed for about twelve months at Dobson, arriving there from Himtlv. He was a prominent worker in Methodist Church circles. '

John Lindsay succumbed to -his injuries at the Grey Hospital ■at 10.30 o’clock this morning. He was a native of Scotland, and 38 vears of age. Thomas Black, who is entombed, was a recent arrival from Scotland. He leaves a wife and a family of three children. His wife is still an inmate of the Nursing Home in Greymouth, twins having been born a few days ago. Mrs. Black, prior to her marriage, was Miss Ford. Her father lost his life in the Dobson mine some months ago. Alfred Noakes was married, but had no family. He was a native of Australia and about 40 year's of age. Before coming to- Dobson Noakes had resided in Reefton.

Ernest Brammer is married and a native of Lancashire, England. He was about 42 years of age. He leaves no family. Edwatd Pardihgton is about 34 years of age.' He is a native of Lancashire and unmarried. Became to the West Coast from Huntly and formerly worked at the State mines, Dunollie. James Marshall, the fifth of the entombed men, is a native of Scotland, married, with two children. He visited Greymouth last evening and won the euphonium solo at the cornpetition held in the Town Hall. He was allowed to give bis selection early in the evening so that he could reach Dobson in time to go into the mine with the ill-fated shift. He was also a prominent worker in Methodist Church circles at Dobson. Marshall arrived in New Zealand from Scotland about six months ago. - TERRIFIC EXPLOSION. The terrific force of the explosion hurled a twenty-ton block- of concrete several yards away from its position at the mine entrance, depositing it on top of the rails oh which the trucks run into the mine. An iron mine truck was v'.irled through the air for a distance of over a quarter of a mile,, smashing the telegraph lines, in its flight. The body of the truck was deposited alongside the railway line, while • • two pairs of bogey wheels landed on the Greymouth side of the Dobson Memorial Stone. Another heavy pair of bogey wheels, were deposited on the .-roadside• adjacent to the Dobson Hotel. The overhead tramway which conveys the trucks to and from the bins was partially wrecked, the roof being torn off and sheets of iron hurled in all directions. ' Windows were shattered in residerfces and shops, while flying pieces of iron penetrated roofs some distance away. Sides of houses were shattered and a chimney, knocked down by the force of the- explosion, which in many cases tossed persons’ from their beds on to the floors. The windows in the Dobson power-house and bath-house were shattered, whilst thick black dust covered .‘everything and the fumes were noticeable at a considerable distance. The blast from the explosion also shot out from the air drive, located around a s’pnr. of the hill where the fan-house is situated and debris was plentiful there also, while the scrub on the bill side was burned and blackened for many, yards around.

The noise of the upheaval was distinctly beard at Grevmouth and Runanga, while at Kaiata and Omoto, people were awakened by the tremendous blast. discovery of men. The rescue party found the four men Richards, Hunter, Lindsay, and Ashton at the house about two chains from the bottom of the main haulage road, which is about 1300 feet in length with a slight grade. Lindsay, Hunter, and Richards, were inside the cabin' which contains the electric switch. They were blackened and burned almost bevond recognition. Ashton was 'standing up in a semiconscious condition and kept repeating “I’m cold ” He was terriblv burned. The rescuers were headed by Mr. I. Hughes (mine manager), and included Messrs. Jack Smeaton, B. Watkihs, T. Alien, A. Hill, A. Edwards, J. Bell, Bullock. Bell, Hanlon, Cosgrove. Tait, Glen, Dando, Creagh, and F. Williams (Mayor of Brunner). COMMUNICATION BY ROPES. Communication was maintained by means of ropes. The four men were found in such a pitiable condition

through burns that when the rescuers picked them up the skin peeled from their hands. . It was considered that the explosion originated in the lower dip level, and that the entombed men at the time of the explosion would probably, be sitting in the main drive at crib time, where the air would be fresher, and if they were not instantly killed by the blast' thev would probably be asphyxiated bv the fumes or crushed bv a. fall of the’roof. The-latter was quite possible in the lower two levels of the mine, which were of coat, whereas the main dip was of rock. The latter ran in a north-easterly direction, while the No. 1 dip below it ran soit’-east for about twelve chains, and the No. 2 dip extended in a similar direction for - about 14 chains.

A PATHETIC SCENE. Soon after 5 o’clock the body of Richards was brought to the surface followed closely by. the other three men. The bath-house was converted into a temporary hospital, the stretchers being laid across planks. It was a pathetic scene at the mine mouth, where a group of weeping women and grimfaced men watched the rescuers emerge with their motionless burdens. Dr. Violet Rains had been summoned, and she, assisted by her sister, Miss Rains, and Mrs. Chetwynd, of Dobson, did splendid work for the sufferers. Dr. J, W. Mcßrearty, of Greymouth, arrived shortly afterwards., Nothing could be done for Richards and Hunter, who died a few minutes after 6 o’clock. On the arrival of the ambulance from Greymouth, Ashton and Lindsaywere, removed to the hospital in a critical condition.

MIRACULOUS ESCAPES. Three members of the night (or dog) watch shift, Jack Smeaton, Toro Nimnio, and W. Chetwynd, had a miraculous escape from death. They were employed in transporting rails from the mine entrance to the bottom of the, dip, and just, at crib time, were at the surface. They accordingly decided to have it in the open-air instead of joining their comrades in the mine. Before they again descended the explosion -occurred. The enginedriver, A. Robertson, was the only other man on duty at the surface at the time Smeaton is president of the Grev Valiev Miners’ Union.

RESCUERS' GRAVE RISK. About six o’clock the fan was reversed, with the object. of trying to clear the dip of fumes, and the spectators were warned to keep away, as another explosion was possible. Fortunately this did not occur, and preparations were made for another party to descend in charge of Mr. O. J. Davis, the newly-appointed Inspector of Mines, who this week succeeded Mr. C. J. Strongman in that position. The party, which included a number of the original band of rescuers, took a frightful risk in entering the mine, but were not daunted by it when their comrades were still there. Before trucks could be used it was necessary to lay temporary rails across the mass of concrete that had been dislodged at the entrance. After an absence of about half an hour the gallant rescue party returned to the surface, having been driven back by fire and fumes. Plenty of volunteer helpers were available, but it was found that any further attempt at rescue work would be futile. After a conference of the various mine managers, including Messrs. G. Hughes (Dobson), 1. A. James (Superintendent State Mines), King (State Mines), W. Parsonage (Blackball), A. O’Donnell (Roa), T. Whittlestone (Wallsend), with the Inspector of Mines (Mr. O. J. Davis) and Messrs. W Balderstone and J. Smeaton, of the executive of the miners’ council, it was decided, owing to the condition revealed when ventilation was restored, that it would be unwise to make any further attempts in the meantime to recover the bodies, the unanimous opinion being that the risk was too great and that the eneombed men would be dead. It was therefore decided to seal up the mine with temporary clay stoppings, to be followed with more permanent stoppings, with a view to extinguishing the fire. ANOTHER EXPLOSION. A further sensational explosion occurred at 2.45 o’clock this afternoon, which blew out the stoppings placed at both entrances to the mine and caused further destruction to buildings in the direct line of the mine mouth Fortunately barricades had been erected to keep spectators from getting near the mine entrance, otherwise further serionsconseqnences would probably have resulted. A police guard has been stationed near the entrance to the mine since earlv this morning. After the explosion this afternoon a

The Minister directs that no expense is to be spared by you in rescue work, and that if required arrange for special train or motors. Please wire me hourly results of rescue work.

further .conference, was. held, when, it was decided that the only effective method of dealing with the fire was to flood the mine. Pumping apparatus for this purpose will be railed to Dobson this evening.

A FOURTH EXPLOSION. A fourth explosion, more violent than that experienced this afternoon, occurred at the Dobson mine at about 9 o’clock to-night". The flying debris affected some houses in the direct line of the disturbance. Three or four families left Dobson for Greymouth, preferring to spend a night away from the danger zone. The alleged cause of the explosion was an attempt to seal the main air drive with the object of subduing the flames. The shock caused temporary .fluctuation of th e lights generated by the Grev Power Board’s plant at Dobson The previous explosions had served to clear the Accumulation _ of debris near the month of the mine, otherwise the consequences might have been more serious. There is no change in the condition of Ashton, the only survivor of the explosion. The work of flooding the mine fill be commenced to-morrow morning.

OPERATIONS SUSPENDED FOR NIGHT By Telegraph.—Pbzss association. Greymouth, December 3. ’ Operations to cope with the Dobson mine fire were suspended before 11 p.m. It is not expected that there will be any more explosions to-night, as v the mine is now open, and explosive mixtures cannot be formed. Ashton’s condition is improving, and now is hopeful. RESCUE WORK DEPARTMENT’S ASSISTANCE NO EXPENSE TO BE SPARED Following receipt of the news of the explosion, the Mines Department issued instructions to the officials of the State mines to do everything possible tp render assistance in rescue work, etc. The following urgent telegram was dispatched bv the Under-Secretary (Mr. A. H. : Kimbell) to the superintendent of the State colliers at Greymouth “Please render every possible assistance in rescuing the men in the Dobson mine.”

Upon receipt of a further message from Greymouth, the following; telegram was dispatched

The Department points out that the accident occurred during the "dog” watch, which does duty from 10 o’clock at night until 6 the next morning, when the fewest number of men is employed in the mine. Had the explosion occurred either in the coarse of the dav shift or afternoon shift, the death toll probably would have been very much heavier, as many more men would be in the mine in the daylight hours.

The Chief Inspector of Mines (Mr. Bayne) left for Greymouth last night.

GIVEN UP AS DEAD NO HOPE FOR ENTOMBED . MEN MINE TO BE FLOODED According to telegraphic advice the Minister of Mines received last night from the superintendent of the State Coal Mines (Mr. James), the five entombed miners have been given up as dead, and hope of recovering the bodies at present has been abandoned. The message was couched in the following terms:—

"Myself, Millar, King (mine manager), Parsonage (mine manager) and Davis (inspector of mines) have been at Dobson since 6 a.m. to-day. We restored ventilation temporarily and inspected the mine as far as it was safe to do so We found the mine on fire

“After the inspection . and a conference with other managers, and also the union executive, it was unanimously agreed that the entombed men were dead, and that it was too dangerous to take any further risks It was agreed to seal tip both mine entrances, and this work was nearly completed when a second explosion occurred, fortunately without further loss of life. "Have now decided to flood the mine by pumping from the Grey River.’’

STATEMENT BY DIRECTORS NO IDEA AS TO CAUSE OF EXPLOSION Dominion Special. Christchurch, December 3. On receipt of the news of the raining disaster a meeting of the local directors of Grey Valley Collieries, Ltd., was held here, and the following statement was issued by the secretary : — The present directorate of the company is as follow: —Messrs. F, R. Hogarth, chairman (Wellington), R. B. Bell (Tiinaru), J. Catchpole (Auckland), M. Davis (Christchurch), J. M. A. Hott (Wellington), S. Kirkcaldie (Wellington), A. Smith (Greymouth). The secretary is Mr. \V Anderson (Christchurch), and the manager Mr. W. Leitch, M.I.M.E Mr. Leitch has been indisposed for the last month and is at present at Rotorua on sick leave. Mr. J. A. Hughes is the mine manager. The mine was inspected a fortnight ago by the Chief Inspector of Mines (Mr. j. A. C. Bayne) and the local inspectors, no defects being reported to the directorate The directors have no idea whatever as to how the explosion could have occurred, or as to any contingent factors. The news has come as a very great shock to them. The Greymouth director, Mr. A. Smith, has been at the mine since the receipt of the news at Greymouth, in the small hours of the morning. Mr. Catchpole, who represents the Auckland shareholders on the directorate, and is at present on a visit to Christchurch, is leaving for the mine immediately. Messrs. Catchpole, Bell, and Davis, who were in Christchurch this morning, expressed in feeling terms the sympathy of the board of directors with the relatives of the deceased and entombed men, and everything possible in the circumstances is being done for the survivors by' the resident director and the mine manager.

THOROUGH INQUIRY TO BE MADE SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS RECALLED Deep regret was expressed by the Minister of Mines (Hon. G. J. Anderson) yesterday morning, when news reached him of the mine disaster. “As long ago as April 3, 1925,” added the Minister, “I gave instructions that the inspection staff were to keep a close watch on the operations then being carried out at the mine and to see that every precaution was taken in the interests of the safety of the men. Those instructions were given shortly after the mine started working, and I am advised that the instructions given by me have been carried out by responsible officers. The cause of the disaster will be thoroughly investigated.”