Description

The fourth accident under this heading occurred at Middridge Colliery belonging to Messrs. The Weardale Steel, Coal, & Coke Co., Ltd., on 20th September, a man acting as onsetter losing his life. He had finished his work at the Busty Seam hanging-on and wished to be taken up in the cage to the Harvey Seam. In a case of this kind the signal from the onsetter to the engineman was two raps whilst the cage was in motion, and then one rap when the cage is at the Busty Seam. Unfortunately one rap only was given, with the result that the engineman thought a continuance of coal work from the Busty Seam was meant and he consequently, on receiving one rap, started the cage away as rapidly as usual. The onsetter, apparently not looking to see if the cage was still there, stepped off the flat sheets into, as he thought, the cage, but in reality into the shaft, and, falling 26 fathoms was killed instantly.

Sources

• 1907 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 4045), Durham District (No. 4) by R. D. Bain, H.M. Inspector of Mines, Page: 17 Where to find this report
• 1907 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 4045), Durham District (No. 4) by R. D. Bain, H.M. Inspector of Mines, Page: 37, Accident Number: 496 Where to find this report

Researchers

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