Disasters - Names		Disasters - Names

Date:	21st August 1906
Colliery:	Lingdale (Ironstone)
Cause:	Explosion
Lives Lost:	1

There were two fatal explosions this year, the first of which occurred on August 21st in the Lingdale Mine in the North Riding of Yorkshire, belonging to Messrs. Pease and Partners, Ltd., which proved fatal to one man and slightly injured another who was working with him.

Gas has been found before in this mine, and in the particular district where the explosion took place, but not in dangerous quantities, and it is usually comparatively easily dealt with. On the day in question a shot had been fired about 7 o'clock in the morning near the top of the place which is about 9 feet high; later, about 8.30 another hole about 3' 6" long was bored near the bottom of the place and charged with eight or nine pellets of compressed powder and fired with a squib in the usual manner. This shot did not bring down any ironstone and did not blow out the stemming, but expended itself in a natural jack or fissure in the stone, at the back of the hole, which was not known to be there; the men not having noticed it when drilling the hole. The man who fired the shot, and two others who were close by, distinctly heard the shot go off, and about ten minutes later the two miners returned; they examined the place and found no gas except a small feeder which was given off after the first shot was fired and which was kept burning. They then proceeded to drill out the stemming in the last hole, and just as they had got it nearly out the remainder was forced out by the gas which was ignited at the naked lights the men were using. The man who was holding the drill in position was severely burned nearly all over his body and died in the Guisborough Hospital the same night. The other who was striking the drill, and was more to one side, escaped with burns to one hand and arm. It would probably have been safer to have drilled a fresh hole instead of boring out the stemming, and this will be done in future if a similar thing occurs, but doing as they did was easier and quicker, and the men did not anticipate any danger as they had never come across more than small quantities of gas before.

Owing to the great height of the seam it is difficult to keep brattice airtight, and it is found to be safer and better to allow the gas to burn as it comes off, as there is no danger of it setting fire to anything, than to allow it to come off in the usual way when an accumulation might be formed which would be a source of danger and difficult to remove. This practice is generally adopted in all the Cleveland Mines where explosive gas is met with and it is found to be the safest method of dealing with it. The blower continued to burn for some days after the first ignition.

The places where gas has been found are examined with a safety-lamp, but for ordinary working naked lights are used as, owing to the thickness of the seam and the nature of the roof, the light from the safety-lamp would be insufficient to enable a proper examination of the roof and would he very inconvenient when setting timber, and it is thought that more accidents from falls would result if safety-lamps were used than under the present system.

Source:

1906 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 3449)

	Johnson, Daniel, aged 29, Miner, severely burnt by gas escaping from a "back," which ignited at his lighted candle
	All names found

 

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