THE TERRIBLE COLLIERY EXPLOSIONS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume II, Issue 52, 4 March 1867, Page 3

THE TERRIBLE COLLIERY EXPLOSIONS

[From the Home News, December 26.] The past month has been one of ihe most fatal that has been known in the mining districts of England. On December 10 there was an explosion from flre-diimp at Bolton, causing serious injury to 50 or 60 persons. On the afternoon of the 12 th occurred the first of three fatal explosions at Barnsley. THE BAKNSLET EXPLOSION, An explosion, with terrible results, occurred on December 12 in the Oaks Colliery, about a mile and a half from Barnsley, near a small village known as Hoyle Mill. The people living there — almost all of them collier* — were, shortly after 1 o'clock on that afternoon, stariled by the sound of an explosion, which shook the ground ]Jke an earthquake. Those near the Oaks Colliery saw a dense volume of smoke issuing from one of the shafts, and were soon made aware of the seat of the calamity. Within a few minutes a large crowd, mainly composed of women and children, collected on the pit bank. Most of these were half wild wiih grief, and, in their frantic movements from one part of the bank to another, implored information about relatives whom they knew to be below. It was known that nearly 400 men and boys were in the pit. Preparations were commenced with great promptitude to rescue the poor fellows. It was determined to descend the second shaft, as it was found that the explosion bad destroyed the wire rope in the Other, and as the thick volume of smoke which still' ascended made a descent there impossible. The men who brought up the first batch of dead pitmen reported that the passage of air had been stopped, rendering it for a time impossible to go beyond the immediate vicinity of the foot of the shaft. There could be little or no hope, they said, 'of reaching ihe bulk of the miners who were below until the works could be. opened and a free circulation of air obtained. Continual descents were ma c in the shaft which remained open, and up to about 5 o'clock more than 30 bodies of men and lads had been landed at the bank. Several of these were dead, and most of the others were so badly burned that ts®re seemed little hope o' their lives being jgped. Among those first sent up were several lads of from 12 to 14 years of age. The -bodies, which were carried from the mouth of the shaft to the cabin, were so disfigured that their relatives, in many cases, found it difficult to identify them. There were anxious mothers and sisters who, unable to make out the features of the charred a- id blackened . faces, turned to the elojrs on the feet and. the buttons on the clothes for means of identification. In a few cases the men who were got out of the pit liliT3 appeared to be in the greatest agony ; but in>st of them seemed to have been so benumbed, pis.-ihly by the foul gases evolved by the explosion,ns to have lost all sense of feeling. One of the last men brought up was very little hurt, and was seen io have the dead body of a cat in his hand. The scene in the pit is described as frightful. Bodies and limbs lay apart, and several headless trunks were sent up. One collier who hid aided in the extrication of the dead told his comrades, on reaching the pit bank in a fainting state, that he had se n fcur men lyir.g dead in a heap. Several who, like this man. had become worsted b} their labors were ordered to remain quiet on one side, but the brave fellows insisted. in tones and with the appearance of drunken men, occasioned by the gas, that they "could goo aaain." After the bodies had been washed, a number of the deceased were identified. At 9 o'clock on the morning of the 13th there •was a second violent explosion at all the pits. At 9.50 a.m. there was a third violent explosion at the downcast?. The No. 1 cage was blown into the headgear and broken, and two vertical columns of black smoke and dust were visible for two or three minute^. Mr. Parkin Jeffcock, Mr. Smith (Lundhill). Mr. D. Tewart, and about 25 men were down in the pit at the time of these two explosions. No change was noticed in the pits until ;ibout 7.30 p in. on the 13th, when dense •white smoke issued frcm No. 2 pit, succeeded by an exceeding strong current of wind, &c , thin smoke, accompanied by volumes of sparks. At this time the furnace-shaft; became a downcasr. The pumping-engine was now stopped, and all fires and lights extinguished near the top of the pits. About 1 p.m. on the 14th, the sparks nearly disappeared, but the current of air continued. About a quarter to 5, on the same morning, Mr. Mammott heard the signal-bell ring. He immediately Lot some men together, and they decided upon descending ; and for that purpose they removed a gin-rope from the furnace pit, and ligged it up at No. 1, using the saw- mill engine. He and Mr. Embletop, junior, then descended, and near the bottom of the pit found Samuel Brown alive, and brought him to bank. They shouted and looked about the pit, but could not hear or find any one. They, however, saw a large fire still burning ; there were many corves of coal there all on fire. A meeting of the most eminent and experienced colliery viewers in England was held at Barnsley on Friday, the 14th, when, after hearing the explanations of those who had descended and explored the mine, the meeting was unanimously of opinion, as to the probable existence of standing fires in tlie mine, and that any descent or attempt to examine it at present would be attended with certain risk in life. On the morning of Saturday, the 1 5th, between 4 and 5 o'clock two more explosions took place at the pit, the report of which reverberated across the country for miles. The police officers on duty —state that the reports were followed by a strong smell of sulphur. On the evening of the 16th three slight explosions occurred. The engineers have commenced flooding the pit, to extinguish the fires raging. A local paper says that the. number of bodies recovered was 76. Several of those got out alive have since died. All accounts confirm the statement that the number of those m'.s; ing exceeds 300. The following telegram was sent by the Queen on the subject of this great catastrophe :— The Queen learns with deep regret the extent of the ' frightful calamity, and desires if a subscription is ' set on foot to put down her name for £200 for the relief of the families of unfortunate sufferers. - Words cannot do justice to the courage that animated- the breasts of hundreds on December

1 2. Within half an hour of the occurrence, Mr. Dymond, the managing partner, without the slightest hope of seeing- daylight again, led the forlorn hope to the bottom of the pit. Between that time and midnight relays of men t who had volunteered their services, perfectly aware of the peril, followed his grand example. A gentleman who formed one of this band states that on descending every one expected to "be cut off from the land'of the living ;" but that once engaged in searching for the dead, or attempting to restore suspended ventilation,, danger was forgotten. When the suckimrof the air increased after Wednesday midnight the numbers lessened, yet at one time there were no fewer than a hundred men in the pit face to face with death. This noble condtut continued until the explosion on Thursday. During Wednesday afternoon, when the confusion rendered anything like order impossible, the crowds around the pit mouth were a slight hindrance to the workers. The dead bodies of their comrades came up too sluwly for the impatient ; and those who were half frantic with anxiety to recognise lost friends in "the inanimate cage loads brought up, at length used harsh and angry words. Beyond question no human effort has been spared that could have rescued those in danger. Affecting details are recorded of some of the burials. A stalwart man attracted the attention of all as he walked to the graveside of bis brother. He seemed to struggle hard to keep down his emotion, but his heart was full, and he raised his hands in agony and allowed the tears to flow unrestrained. As the body of his brother, Henry Kothwell, was lowered to its last resting-place, he seemed to lose his reason, and exclaimed, '' He was my brother ! hc> was my brother !" There was a strangeness and violence of manner which showed that restraint was necessary. Powerful hands were laid upon him, in all friendliness, and with a det p feeling of sympathy, but he wrenched himself from them, exclaiming, "He was my brother!" The depth and intensity of his emotion were not of the common order, and it was evident he was suffering from a sort of hysteric fit. With /];reat difficulty he was conveyed to a house near the gates, and a pot containing water was placed to his lips, lie broke the pot with his teeth and ground it to small pieces. The melancholy processions continued until dusk, and deep emotion was depicted in every face.