28^th November 1862

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The Walker Colliery Explosion

Newcastle-On-Tyne, Thursday Afternoon.

Mr. Reed, the Coroner for South Northumberland, and a jury assembled in the Railway Inn, Walker, this morning to make inquiry into the cause of the death of William Barnes and the 15 men and lads killed in the pit at this place on Saturday morning last.

Mr. M. Dunn, Government inspector of mines ; Mr. T. E. Foster, consulting engineer to the coal trade ; Mr. Jobling, managing viewer of the colliery, and other mining engineers were present, but there appeared to be but little interest felt in the inquiry by the pitmen, as few, if any, were present.

Anthony Barnes, master wasteman at Walker Colliery, was the first witness examined. He was in the pit at the time that the explosion took place. It occurred about a quarter past 6 in the morning of the 22nd of this month. He had gone through the waste before the accident took place. Found all to be right, and a good current of air prevailing. Never saw any gas in the pit ; but they wrought with the Davy lamp. At half-past 4 o'clock he was at the north or down cast "trouble." The men were shooting stone to enlarge the return. While there witness saw Haswell fire one shot in the stone. The explosion occurred an hour and three-quarters after that. After firing the shot, witness asked Haswell and the other two men to go back with him to where they had their clothes lying to get a "bit bait" (something to eat). He could be with them there about 10 minutes. He left them sitting there, and they would have to return to the trouble again, but he did not think that they could have time to prepare and fire another shot before the explosion took place. He was at the furnace at the upcast when it occurred. The first thing he did was to go to the north side of the upcast pit. He found the doors all right. He returned to the furnace and kept the fires on, and stopped there as long as he could, but was obliged to leave on account of the after-damp. He came out of the pit by the up-cast. He was very ill from the effects of the after-damp. He could say nothing further about it.

By Mr. Dunn. — There are goaves in the pit, but he never saw any gas. One of the furnaces had been damped six hours before the explosion took place. The explosion was a mystery to him. The size of the return was 6ft. by 4ft. He did not think that the explosion took place at the trouble.

By Mr. Foster. — Before the shot was fired he examined the place with his lamp, and found that all was clean, when he then told them to fire. If the waste near two working boards were foul, he did not think that the boards would be foul.

George Shields, back overman at Walker Colliery, on the day that the pit fired had previously been through all the workings. Everything was safe. The indications of gas were trifling. He examined the wide boards between the two troubles or dykes, and found no gas. Had there been any gas there it would have gone along by the return to the dyke, where Haswell was working. The gas he saw was two walls north and two pillars west from the return on the low side of the dyke, in the face of a wall. Had never seen gas outside of the goaves. He believed that the goaves were clean. He could not tell where the gas had come from, or the seat of the explosion. Had his lamp in the north juds of the goaves on the morning of the explosion. There was as much air as usual, though the furnace was slackened. There were eight hewers working in the pit at the time of the explosion. When the air was slackened there was sufficient air to work the pit with safety.

Edward Robinson, another overman at the colliery, was in the east district at the time of the explosion. Had examined it that morning. There was a good current of air going through the pit that morning. Could not form any idea where the explosion took place. When it occurred he made to the shaft for a light. When he got it he went back to the men whom he had passed in coming out. He then tried to get to the trouble where the men were blasting, but after getting six walls in he was obliged to return. He found that the stoppings were displaced. He then returned back, and met Mr. Cole, and then went up the west way. A very few minutes after the air appeared to be travelling in its usual course up the west district, and in sufficient quantity. He did not think that the explosion occurred where the men were firing a shot at the trouble.

By Mr. Dunn. — Never saw any gas on the edge of the goaf. Had capital air in the pit on the morning of the explosion. Had found four Davy lamps broken. One was not locked. It was found in the west, contiguous to the goaf. It was the deputy's lamp. Every viewers lamp was locked. The deputy's lamp was half screwed on. There were four lamps missing. There must have been a great accumulation of gas to have caused the explosion from the damage that was done.

By Mr. Foster. — He believed that the blast came from the north-west, where the goaves and pillars were. He inferred that from the appearance of the stoppings. They were lying to the south.

William Mason had charge of the lamps in Walker Colliery. He repaired them when necessary. They were in good repair and perfect.

Mr. W. R. Cole, resident viewer at Walker Colliery. — Examined the pit a week before the explosion. Examined it thoroughly. The scales and the stables registered 6,842 cubic feet of air per minute ; the first east way, 10,500ft. ; the second east way, 15,600ft. ; the north way, going down the dyke, 1,200ft. ; the west way, 17,018ft. At the time of the explosion, when we were easing the Ann Pit and had slackened the furnace, the total amount of air — 61,960 cubic feet per minute — would be diminished. In consequence of this, there would be in the stables at the time of the explosion 5,152ft. ; in the first east way it was reduced to 7,330ft. ; in the second east way to 11,700ft. ; in the north way to 9,000ft. ; in the east way to 12,764ft. This was amply sufficient air to carry on the pit with perfect safety. The reduction of air in consequence of the operations in the shaft would be one-fourth. In the east way the 12,764 cubic feet of air is divided so that one-half of it was taken into the whole boards when the four men were found, and into the juds, and the other half into the west district. Had examined the place where the men were firing the shot in the trouble, but could not form an opinion whether the explosion had taken place there or not. At the place where the men were blasting the trouble there was not the least indication of the explosion having occurred.

By Mr. Foster. — The cause of his not having been down the pit for a week before the accident was that he had been poorly, and in the doctor's hands. His usual custom was to go down the pit every day.

By Mr. Dunn. — The stable air goes into the return immediately, and so does the first eastway air, neither of them entering the workings.

Mr. T. E. Foster, viewer, said that he had considerable experience in his profession. Had examined Walker Colliery yesterday very minutely. Her went to the west side of the trouble, where the men had been blasting, and from the appearance of the timber at that point he was satisfied that the explosion did not occur there. He was borne out in that opinion by the fact of the lamps of the deputies who were working there having been found with their tops on and all secure. It was true the wasteman's lamp had not been found, but, as he had nothing to do with the blasting, he presumed that his lamp top would be all right. He examined the workings in the four whole boards in the west and north, and he found that the greatest amount of damage had been done there. It was his opinion that the explosion had occurred either from a defective lamp or from an injury to a safety lamp. It was also his opinion that the quantity of gas had not been much, or else the damage would have been considerably greater. He had examined the ventilation with very great care, and found the quantity of air going into the west way, the east way, and second east way, before it divided, to be 50,400 cubic feet per minute, which, in his opinion, was quite ample to ventilate the pit in safety. All goaves have gas in them.

By the Coroner. — He thought that when one of the juds next to the goaf was drawn a day or two before the explosion it had not fallen, but that it fell at the time of the explosion, smashing the lamps, and originating the disaster. In the north return there is no trace of damage. It is a splendid return.

Mr. W. Armstrong, viewer, of Wingate Grange, who had examined the pit in company with Mr. Foster yesterday, generally concurred with the evidence given by that gentleman. The goaf was exceedingly small and the amount so short that he thought the diminished air at the time of the explosion was sufficient. There was little timber in the pit, and all the conditions for good ventilation existed.

Mr. R. Johnson, of Haswell, examined, agreed with Mr. Foster as to the cause of the accident.

Mr. Jobling said the last accident in the pit, three years ago, was caused by a man removing the top of his safety lamp.

The jury returned the verdict, "Explosion purely accidental."