Description

No. 27 on the list. — This is an accident of an unusual nature. It took place at the Brancepeth C Pit, belonging to Messrs. Strakers and Love, about 10 o'clock in the morning of the 24th of April last, and by it three men, named John Hadlestone Brown, Wm. Friend, and Geo. Mills, lost their lives.

About this time there was some dispute existing between the Company and their workmen, and in consequence the pits were idle. The opportunity was taken advantage of to clean out the coal hopper, which is used to store coal in for the use of the coke ovens. The dimensions of this hopper are as follows: 24 ft. x 31 ft. X 31 ft. 6 in. high.

At the top of it there are windows for the purpose of providing light at a point where some machinery has to be examined and oiled each day. There are four stages or platforms fitted in the inside of the hopper, at about equal distances apart, and the whole arrangement is tied together by iron rods passing from side to side.

The coal, after coming from the screens, is crushed by means of disintegrators, and then carried by elevators to the top of the hopper, and taken out into small tubs or waggons through slides at the bottom of it, for the use of the coke ovens.

It will thus be seen that the coal, even when the hopper is partially or entirely filled, will be very fine and dry; but at the time when the explosion took place all the coal had been taken out that could be got by the ordinary method, and six men were sent in to clean out the very fine dust adhering to the sides, and any coal that might be left in the corners or on the stages. For this purpose they took with them shovels and four open "torch" lamps, the latter being hung on the iron tie-rods near to the bottom. Three of the men remained at the bottom and three went to the higher platforms and commenced to throw the dust down, and had only done so for about three minutes when a tremendous explosion took place, severely burning all of them. The dust had been falling very thickly on to the open lights, and there can be no doubt that the explosion was altogether one due to coal dust. Under the conditions existing no gas could be present, as the windows and roof were not sufficiently tight to prevent its escape if any had been given off from the coal, and an open torch light was used at the top of the hopper by the man superintending the machinery only a few minutes before.

The men who subsequently died were those working at the top of the box. Those at the bottom, although severely burnt, escaped by the slide holes. Part of the roof was blown off, and inside the hopper the sides were covered with charred coal dust.

A careful inquiry was held before Mr. Deputy Coroner Proud on May the 8th, at which the jury returned the following verdict:—

"Death caused by the firing of coal dust coming in contact with naked lights." With the recommendation "that no naked lights be taken into the coal hoppers in future."

The accident is no doubt solely due to the fact that naked lights were used, and it cannot be too strongly impressed upon the attention of colliery owners and managers that such a practice is highly dangerous, and to prevent accidents of this kind, nothing but safety lamps should be allowed on any pretext to be taken into hoppers of this description.

Census Data

Please note: the census extracts shown here are our 'best guess match' to the person shown on this page and is not intended to be definitive — only knowledge of the family would allow this.

Brancepeth Colliery Memorial

Tombstone

Sources

• 1881 Census — taken 3rd April, 1881
• 1889 Mines Inspectors Report (C 6015), Durham District (No. 4) by Thomas Bell, H.M. Inspector of Mines, Page: 28, Accident Number: 27 Where to find this report
• 1889 Mines Inspectors Report (C 6015), Durham District (No. 4) by Thomas Bell, H.M. Inspector of Mines, Page: 7 Where to find this report
• Church/Cemetery photograph (T-02206-04-0002) © Kev Duncan
• Headstone(s) in St. Stephen's Churchyard/Cemetery, Willington
• Tombstone photograph (T-02215-04-0002) © Kev Duncan

Researchers

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