BURIED ALIVE

Taranaki Daily News, 21 September 1921, Page 5

BURIED ALIVE

‘ THE MINE DISASTER.

TWENTY BODIES FOUND. FIFTY-TWO STILL MISSING. NO HOPE OF RESCUE. Further details of the wrecking by an explosion of the Mount Mulligan coal mine, in the Cairns district of Queensland, reveal a terrible disaster. Twenty bodies have been recovered, leaving 52 miners still missing, and it is announced that there is no hope of further rescues. The mine is totally wrecked, and it is feared a fire has broken out.

By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright. Received Sept. 20, 10.30 p.m. Melbourne, Sept. 20. The Mount Mulligan office has received advices stating that there is no hope of further rescues, the mine being totally wrecked. Received Sept. 20, 9.20 p.m. Brisbane, Sept. 20. Throughout the night gangs of men labored feverishly clearing the thousands of tons of debris which choke the mouth of the wrecked Mount Mulligan mine, where men are entombed, and by daylight seven bodies were recovered. Their charred, unrecognisable state indicated how the miners were eaught.

The work was continued without cessation, and by the afternoon twenty bodies were taken from the wrecked mine, nearly all so disfigured as to make recognition impossible. It was then estimated that fifty-two were still unaccounted for, and as gas fumes are pouring from the wrecked workings through the excavations made by the rescuers, no hopes are entertained that the remainder of the entombed men will be taken out alive.

DETAILS OF THE DISASTER. A SERIES OF EXPLOSIONS. DIFFICULTIES OF RESCUE. Received Sept. 20, 10.30 p.m. Brisbane, Sept. 20. Details of the Mulligan disaster are hard to obtain, as distances and communications render it extremely difficult. to obtain a coherent story. It appears that at 9.30 a.m. on Monday a series of ruffled mumbling explosions shook the whole range of mountains. News spread of an explosion at the mine, and a was made for the entrance, but a steady stream of gas drove the would-be rescuers back, choking, them and making rescue impossible for a time. Later a number of miners, equipped with gas masks, arrived from Chillagoe and rescue work proceeded throughout the night. The men worked in the moonlight, as the escaping gas made the use of artificial lights dangerous. The rescuers have not relaxed their efforts, as their hopes of saving the buried are strengthened by the fact that O’Grady lived for three hours after he was excavated. Gas fumes seriously handicapped the work, and the mine superintendent and the engineer were removed almost at the point of collapse. Frequent falls of earth are occurring, land it is now feared a fire has broken out in the air line of the workings. Apparently, in the ease of the bodies of the men found, they were killed instantly. Special trains are proceeding from Oimbulah, Maruba, and Cairns and other centres with volunteer workers, and a further special train with coffins has also been dispatched. Mr. Evans, the underground manager, had a wonderful escape. A piece of wood penetrated his throat, driving his collar stud into the gullet, but after an operation he is improving. A further body which has been recovered has been identified as that of Frank Gillies. SEVERE EXPLOSION. GAS IMPEDES RESCUE. Brisbane, Sept. 20. The Mulligan explosion was so severe that it wrecked the workings throughout the mine, and was heard eighteen miles away. The number of men in the mine is not certain. One report mentions about a hundred. So far as is known only two escaped from underground, and the under-manager, Evans, was got out badly injured. The bodies of three miners, Thompson, O’Grady and Rumming, have been recovered. All were badly burned. Rescue work is greatly impeded by the large quantities of gas coming from the workings. Some of the rescuers were overcome. Supplies of gas masks and oxygen have been obtained, and are now facilitating progress. It is believed that at least eighty men are entombed.

One theory of the explosion is that the miners broke into gas hitherto unsuspected. The men always used unprotected lights. The bodies recovered were badly burned, indicating that there is little hope for the remainder. The Mulligan mine is owned by the Chillagoe Co., of Melbourne. It is situated 103 miles from Cairns, and has been working eight years. The output is 3000 tons monthly. The wnole productive area is estimated to contain coal sufficient for two hundred years.

PROBABLE CAUSE OF EXPLOSION.

Sydney, Sept. 20. John Evans, consulting engineer and father of tho injured underground manager, stated that some time ago he officially inspected the Mulligan mine, which was extremely dry and dusty. As no fire damp was known to exist it was worked with naked lights. The mine was well equipped throughout and was mechanically ventilated by powerful electric fans. He considered the probable cause of the explosion was the dusty atmosphere producing carburetted hydrogen (otherwise fire damp or marsh gas, the usual cause of explosions). From his experience of explosions it was unlikely under the circumstances that any of the entombed men would be got out alive. Mr. J. T. Watson, the general manager of the Chillagoe mines, after spending some time in New Zealand, received his present appointment. One report states there were a series of explosions closely following each , other. --