Colliery Disaster

An accident occurred at East Hetton Colliery, in the eastern district of the county of Durham, in the early hours of yesterday morning, by which 11 lives are supposed to have been lost. The colliery is the property of Mr. Walter Scott, of Newcastle, and employs 1,400 hands. It is one of the largest in the district, and has lately been very busy. The night shift men had left the pit, and one overman named Thomas Morley and 13 workmen had descended to prepare the mine for the next shift. When in the Cassop district of the Harvey seam about 4 o'clock Morley heard a rumbling sound, and, realizing that a flood had burst into the seam, he shouted to the other men to save themselves. The flood had come from the Cassop workings, which had been disused for some time, and in which the water had apparently accumulated to a tremendous extent. The flood at once involved the men. Morley escaped, and so, with great difficulty, did John Foster and John Stanton, who, by swimming and clinging to a rope connected with the tubs, managed to make their way to the shaft, where they arrived much exhausted and somewhat injured. The flood soon filled the seam, through which it rushed at a great rate. Further entrance to the pit was barred, as the water flowed past the shaft bottom at a rate estimated at 2,000 gallons per minute.

Nothing was heard or seen by the three survivors of their 11 companions. No doubt was entertained during yesterday that they must have been drowned, and there seemed to be no prospect of recovering their bodies for some time. During the afternoon Government officials and representatives of the owner and the men were in consultation as to the best means of pumping out the water, but this, it was expected, would take a considerable time, as extraordinary means of coping with it would have to be adopted. Work was, of course, suspended, the shift for whom the pit was being prepared returning to their homes. The occurrence caused great excitement throughout the district. Large crowds assembled during the day, and many distressing scenes were caused by the grief of the bereaved families, not the least hope being entertained that any of the 11 missing men could be alive.