Disasters - Names		Disasters - Names

Date:	30th November 1888
Colliery:	Cleator, No. 9 Pit (Metalliferous)
Cause:	Suffocation by carbonic acid gas
Lives Lost:	3

The No. 9 pit and No. 6 pit intercommunicate with each other, and the workmen can apparently descend which pit they please under certain limitations. No. 6 pit is generally the downcast and No. 9 the upcast for such ventilation as there is. Some neighbouring pits belonging to other companies are in connexion, that is to say, there are openings with these mines.

Mr. Percy L. Addison is the general manager, Mr. Wm Leck is the manager, and Mr. Wm. Crawford, deputy underground overman.

On the 29th November three men on leaving their work and proceeding towards No. 6 pit found a smell of burning, and on pushing forward found the drifts full of smoke, to such an extent that they were obliged to go to the No. 9 shaft, up which, after some delay in consequence of the engineman then having gone home, they ascended to the surface. These men reported the fire. Leck, the manager, having been passing No. 9 pit on his way home, and hearing unusual signalling at that shaft, arrived in time to hear the report of the men who were drawn up, and immediately proceeded along with Crawford, the overman, who had also arrived, to No. 6 pit. This they descended, and found "15 or 20 sets of wood burning" in the main drift. This, with the assistance of some workmen, they attempted to extinguish, by fixing a water-box on the cage to dip into the water lodgment, lifting the water to the level where the fire was burning, and pitching it on the burning wood from buckets. The smoke was too powerful for them to continue this. On returning to the surface, Leek met Mr. Addison, who had then arrived. Other measures were then adopted, including the use of "hand grenades," and continued until 3 a.m. on the 30th. By these means the fire was much subdued, but as the men were exhausted it was determined by Leck, Mr. Addison then having gone home after deciding no work should be done in the pits during that week, to allow the water to rise in the mine until it reached whatever remained of the fire. They then went home. A message had been sent to Messrs. McKenzie's mines adjoining, by order of Mr. Addison, but no word appears to have been sent to No. 9 pit or the workmen, who, in the ordinary course, would require to descend that pit next morning. There appeared to be an understanding of some kind, although the evidence was conflicting, that Crawford would see after preventing men descending No. 9, and in the ordinary course of his duty he would have been there in time to prevent working. Unfortunately, however, probably owing to his exhaustion and sickness the night before, he failed to do this, and on the men descending to their work, some of them proceeding in the direction of No. 6 were overcome.

Mills died. Brave attempts were made by McAvoy, Phillips, and others in attempting to rescue their comrades, and although several who had been overcome were got away, the result was that the three men Mills, McAvoy, and Phillips lost their lives.

The accident was the subject of a very exhaustive inquiry before Mr. John Webster, coroner for the Lordship of Egremont. Mr. E. Atter, solicitor, represented relatives of the deceased James Phillips, and Mr. J. R. Thompson, solicitor, appeared for the Cleator Iron Ore Company.

The following is a newspaper copy of the very able summing up of the evidence by the coroner, and of the verdict of the jury :—

The coroner then proceeded to sum up the evidence to the jury. He pointed out that under the rules in force at the mines Mr. Addison, the manager, had the control and supervision of the mines, and that Mr. Leek, the deputy manager, had the responsible charge of the mines, subject to the control and supervision of the manager. The most important person, doubtless, in connexion with this unfortunate occurrence, was the overman, Crawford. The rule with regard to the overmen was as follows :– "Subject to the control and supervision of the deputy manager the overmen shall have the responsible charge of those parts of "the mine allotted to them and they shall make a daily inspection of all the working places, roads, and air and water courses therein, and shall see that they are at all times kept in a safe and efficient state; and shall carry out and see carried out the various provisions of the Act so far as incumbent on them or on those acting under their control and direction." The rule was a very good one, and one which, if it were observed not only in these pits, but in the pits in the district would, he believed, have the effect of saving men from being injured and from losing their lives. It was a rule which he had frequently said ought to be observed in its integrity, and the Chief Inspector of the district, Mr. Willis, and the Assistant Inspector, Mr. Oswald, he believed, were also of that opinion. The rule, the jury would notice, said that the overman was "at all times" to keep the working places, roads, &c. in a safe and efficient state, not at any particular time, but "at all times," and he construed that to mean that before the men were allowed to go down the pits the working places were to be seen in a safe and efficient state. The three officials, Messrs. Addison, Leck, and Crawford appeared to have done all they could on the 29th to save their master's property, and they all seemed to agree that the manager and deputy manager gave orders to the overman that No. 6 and No. 9 pits were not to work on the following day. The man most affected by the order was Crawford, and a witness named Lamb had sworn that the order was given. Unfortunately the order was not communicated to the engineman or the banksman at No. 9 pit. There could not be a doubt that it was the duty of some one to have been at No. 9 pit before it began to work on the morning of the 30th. They had heard the statement made by Mr. Addison that the overman Crawford was sick, and that he considered him to be so ill that he prevented him from going down to the pit again. They had also had it in evidence that Mr. Leek was likewise ill, and they had also heard that these two men were at work from ten to three o'clock the next morning. Crawford had been in the employ of the company for many years and until this unfortunate occurrence had always been at No. 6 pit before six o'clock in the morning. On this particular morning Crawford fully expected to get to the pit before the men got to work, but unhappily he did not do so. If the key of No. 9 engine house had continued to he kept at No. 6, no doubt Taylor, the engineman, when he went for it, would have been told by Holden, the engineman at No. 6, that there was a fire in the pit, and probably, but not necessarily, the men would have been prevented from riding the pit. The main thing was that either the manager, the deputy manager, or the overman should have endeavoured to give warning to the men at No. 9, before six o'clock that No. 6 was on fire. There had been neglect in regard to that, there was no doubt:; for if the warning had been given, or if Crawford had been at the pit, the accident would not have happened, and if the special rule requiring that all the working places should be seen to that they were in a safe and efficient state had been thoroughly carried out, the accident would not have happened. Crawford had stated in his evidence that when he went home at three o'clock he fully expected he would be at the pit again at six o'clock. Whether Crawford from the effect of his labours or from the effects of the gas which he had inhaled whilst down the pit was overcome and therefore rendered physically incapable of performing his duties as he had hitherto done was a question — and a particular one — for the consideration of the jury. No one having appeared on behalf of Crawford he had thought it only right to ask Dr. I'Anson whether or not the noxious gas which was thrown off by the fire would have the effect of making Crawford and Leck less capable than usual of performing their duty. It would be for the jury to consider whether they were affected by the gas, and whether they were affected to such an extent as to make them, or either of them, unable to perform their duty in the way in which they would otherwise do. If they came to that conclusion they would get over the question whether there was criminal neglect on the part of those who had the management of the mine. If they should be of opinion that there was neglect, but that the neglect was owing to them being affected by the gas, then they would not hold them criminally responsible for that negligence. If the jury, however, thought that either Leek or Crawford were to blame, and that they were not prevented from discharging their duty by reason of being affected by the gas, then it would be for them to consider whether it was neglect of such a character as to amount to criminal negligence. If they were of opinion that there was criminal negligence, then their verdict would be one of manslaughter against the persons whom they thought had been criminally negligent of their duty. If they did not think there had been criminal neglect, then they would find that the deceased had died from carbonic acid gas poisoning. In concluding, the coroner said it was his duty to express the admiration he felt, and which he was sure the jury felt also, at the gallantry, the self-denial, and the unselfishness displayed by Phillips, McAvoy (two of the deceased men), Walker, Granville, Welsh, Dobson, and others in their efforts to rescue their fellow workmen.

The jury then retired to consider their verdict, and after an hour's absence returned into court with a verdict that death was due to poisoning by carbonic acid gas, to which was attached the following rider: "The jury are of opinion that there has been great but not criminal neglect of duty on the part of the three officials, Messrs Addison, Leek, and Crawford, in not taking necessary and special precautions to prevent the men from going down No. 9 pit."

Source:

1888 Mines Inspectors Report (C 5779)

	McAvoy, James, aged 21, Trailer, suffocation by carbonic acid gas; the wood in a drift in No. 6 pit, having taken fire on the night of 29th November, the fumes from the fire passed to No. 9 pit, which was an upcast shaft for No. 6 pit; no notice having been sent to No. 9 pit of the danger caused by the fire in No. 6 pit, the No. 9 pit workmen descended the pit on the morning of 30th November; John Mills while proceeding to his working place became unconscious and while attempting to rescue him, McAvoy and Phillips lost their lives
	Mills, John, aged 43, Miner, suffocation by carbonic acid gas; the wood in a drift in No. 6 pit, having taken fire on the night of 29th November, the fumes from the fire passed to No. 9 pit, which was an upcast shaft for No. 6 pit; no notice having been sent to No. 9 pit of the danger caused by the fire in No. 6 pit, the No. 9 pit workmen descended the pit on the morning of 30th November; John Mills while proceeding to his working place became unconscious and while attempting to rescue him, McAvoy and Phillips lost their lives
	Phillips, James, aged 38, Miner, suffocation by carbonic acid gas; the wood in a drift in No. 6 pit, having taken fire on the night of 29th November, the fumes from the fire passed to No. 9 pit, which was an upcast shaft for No. 6 pit; no notice having been sent to No. 9 pit of the danger caused by the fire in No. 6 pit, the No. 9 pit workmen descended the pit on the morning of 30th November; John Mills while proceeding to his working place became unconscious and while attempting to rescue him, McAvoy and Phillips lost their lives
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