The Colliery Explosion

Newcastle-on-Tyne, Sunday Night.

As telegraphed from here to-night, the bodies of the 16 unfortunate men and lads killed in Walker Pit, near this town, yesterday morning, by an explosion of gas, have been found, and sent to bank, whence they were carried in colliery carts to their bereaved homes in the Pit-roads. Eight of the 16 were hewers who had gone down the pit in the morning to fill tubs with coals already hewn, and clear away the work for their "marrows," who would have resumed their employment to-morrow morning. There are 160 men and lads employed in the colliery in coal winning, and, with other hands, the number of workpeople will amount to 200. The colliery, as already reported, is amongst the oldest in the coal trade, and has had several shafts or pits, as they are called. But the two shafts by which the colliery has been ventilated and wrought recently are the "Jane" and "Ann" shafts, which are less than half-a-mile apart and carried down to the low seam, 160 fathoms from the surface. These two shafts afford two means of exit, which accounts for the survivors getting so readily to bank. Though the colliery is old, the seam whence she had recently been taking her coal has not been very long opened out by the owners, and the workings are limited. The Walker Colliery is the last of the famous Tyneside collieries, which commonly sent the well-known "Wall's-end" to the London market working. All the others have been drowned out. This escaped by being further to the rise. The workings in the low seam are comprehended in one main northway, with branches running to the east and west. The accident appears to have occurred in the western branch, where the men were killed. Those working in the east branch escaped. The colliery has long borne a high character for admirable management, Mr. Sebling, the head viewer, and Mr. Cole, his resident viewer, having a very high character in the coal trade. Nothing but the Davy lamp was used in the pit, candles being prohibited ; and the overmen and deputies who could use powder in blasting, if it were needed, were men of 20 years' standing, and persons in whom the viewers had the greatest confidence. As already reported the men descended the pit at 2 o'clock yesterday morning and the explosion took place at 6 o'clock ; and though a considerable number of viewers were in the mine yesterday, of course guiding the pitmen in their explorations in search of the bodies, and there has been a consultation to-day, attended by Mr. T. E. Foster, the consulting engineer to the coal trade, Mr. Dunn, Government Inspector of Mines, Mr. Johnson, of Haswell, Mr. Hurst, Mr. Sebling, Mr. Cole, and others, it has not been announced what has been the cause of the explosion. The damage done to the pit is not very extensive. The most serious loss of property to the owners is that of the horses and ponies, 33 in number, which were mainly burnt to death through the stables taking fire. One pony, however, a singular little animal named French, which had brought in Jarrow and Hebburn colliers before it was purchased by the Walker owners, and which is reported to have escaped from accidents in those pits in a miraculous way, was found in the travelling way, between the two pits, this morning alive and unhurt, though a man was lying near it dead, having been suffocated by the after-damp. Dr. Aitchison, the colliery surgeon, reports that the men who escaped from the pit yesterday, and some of whom were suffering from the effects of the gas, have quite recovered. The bodies of the lost men and lads were found in the main north way and in the western branch. The hewers appear to have been stricken down at their work, and five bodies were found in the broken. The fire that occurred after the explosion was confined to a quantity of coal-dust and straw and hay, which ignited about the stables and was extinguished without doing very serious damage to the pit itself ; in fact, contrary to the very general report that prevailed yesterday, the pit is very little injured, and can be put right and fit for work in a couple of shifts. Mr. G. B. Foster, Mr. Hurst, and Mr. Cole, jun. , of Bebside, rendered active aid yesterday in directing the exploring parties who went in search of the bodies. A coroner's inquest will be held to-morrow.

Monday Afternoon.

The inquest upon the bodies of the 16 unfortunate men and lads killed in the Walker Pit was opened by Mr. Reed, the coroner for South Northumberland, this afternoon, at the Railway Inn, Walker, and was going on when our parcel was despatched.

The following is a description of the interior of the pit after the explosion, and the discovery of the bodies :—

"The first news of the catastrophe produced great alarm among the colliery people living in the village, and the distress of those whose relatives were known to be down the pit was most poignant. Occasionally, during the day, a weeping woman might be seen near the colliery ;but the majority of the afflicted ones wisely refrained from leaving their homes to visit a scene which might add to, but could not alleviate their woe. The colliery operatives and other men, to the number of 200 or 300, assembled about the colliery, where they waited with patience and remarkable quietness for such tidings from below as might be communicated to them. The high platform of the pit, where the work of the downcast shaft is carried on, was kept clear by a force of the Northumberland county police, and the work of exploring and clearing the pit of gas was conducted steadily and with despatch. With that heroic sacrifice of self which, in times of peril, is one of the noblest characteristics of the north-country miner, plenty of men were ready and willing to descend into the dangerous windings of the mine in search of their comrades, and every man of them took his turn with the utmost alacrity. As first among the foremost we may mention John Knox, Thomas Collins, and Mason, who between 7 and 8 o'clock made their way to the furnace to renew the fires, in order to restore, as far as possible, the ventilation of the mine. At first the air, even near the shafts, was foul and dangerous, but as the morning advanced the pit cleared itself to some extent ; but it was apparent that, in the shattered condition to which the ways had been reduced, bratticing must be fixed, in order to effect a complete clearance. In the course of the day, therefore, bratticing was carried down, and was gradually extended into the most noxious part of the colliery. Many of the men who formed the first exploring party were brought up in a state of partial incapacity from the effects of the after-damp, but as the brattice was extended the danger became proportionally diminished. It was not, however, until about 7 o'clock at night that the task of identifying the dead and bringing them to the bottom of the shaft became practicable. At this time the work of recovering the bodies commenced in earnest. The party then perambulating the recesses of the mine witnessed sad and awful scenes. All round was a wreck ; on the one-hand a man lay dead, on the other was a horse on his knees, his ears pricked up, his eyeballs still appearing to glare with fright, though he was quite dead, and had probably been killed instantaneously by the first and only shock of the explosion. Four of the men were found in their respective "boards," or long narrow spaces of working. One man, Moore, had been blown a distance of about 30 yards from the face of the seam ; he was much scorched, but not considerably injured in other ways, and he was recognized. In the second board, T. Miller, a man about 40 years of age, was lying near the face of the board, and seemed as calm as in life. He was neither scorched or wounded, and did not seem to have been moved from the place where he had been working. Thomas Kenny was the man in the third board, and he had been carried by the force of the blast about 46 yards from the place where he would have been working when the explosion occurred. One of his legs was broken below the knee ; he was sadly burnt about the head, and was so much disfigured as not to be easily recognized. John Ellerton, who was in the fourth board, was thrown about 16 yards from the face of the working, and was much scorched. His body was almost buried among an accumulation of flat stones, and he was disfigured. William Burrell was found in the west way leading to the "juds." He was lying flat upon his face, and appeared to have been struck dead by fire. "Juds" is a name applied by miners to broken workings, and in one of these juds, about 100 yards from the unbroken workings or boards, five men were found. John Mitcheson, George Barnes, and William Barnes were discovered lying over each other in the corner of the jud, and it was remarked as a curious fact that a watch found in the pocket of William Barnes was still going and indicating the correct time. A watch found in the pocket of George Barnes had stopped at 10 minutes past 6 o'clock. In the west jud Thomas Atkinson was lying on his back upon some coal, where it was inferred he had been resting at the time of the explosion. Barnes seemed to have been struck on the face as he was lying in a similar position on the coals. An expression of intense fright was observable on his countenance and in his eyes. John Holt was found in the rolley-way. Thus 12 men were found and were brought to the foot of the shaft. Five coffins, being all that were then ready, received the remains of five men, which were then hoisted up out of the pit and taken to the homes of the distressed relatives of the deceased. A small crowd stood around during this portion of the sad work, and they seemed for the moment to be solemnly impressed with the funereal aspect of the scene as the coffins were removed. One widow was present when the corpse of her husband was brought up, and a father had waited in silent sadness during the day for the bodies of his two sons."

As already reported, the other bodies were found during the course of Saturday night and sent to bank. The carcases of the horses and ponies were brought out of the pit last night.