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	Disasters - Names		Disasters - Names

Date:	13th October 1900
Colliery:	East Hetton
Company:	Walter Scott Ltd.
Cause:	Accident on Surface
Lives Lost:	1
Category:

No. 384 on the list occurred at East Hetton Colliery, belonging to Messrs. Walter Scott, Ltd., on October 13th, and caused the death of a labourer.

This man was cleaning out the second boiler of a range of six. It had been emptied the night before and everything was ready for him to go into it when he came to work at 6 o'clock in the morning. Shortly before 7 o'clock the boiler-minder was sludging one of the other boilers, and the sludge-cock, although it was screwed down to its usual mark, had not been quite tight, and some steam entered the boiler in which the deceased man was. He rushed out, at the bottom manhole right over the top of the cock which was leaking, and w as so severely scalded about his arms, legs, chest, and abdomen that he died four days afterwards.

If he had got out of the boiler by the top manhole he would probably not have taken much harm, but he no doubt rushed to the nearest manhole and had to creep over the outlet from the valve which was allowing the steam to pass.

The cause of the value not being tight was that some scale off the boiler had got into it and prevented it being closed quite tight.

There did not appear to have been anything done to test the valve or other fittings before the man went in. This should, I think, always be done, and it is a dangerous practice to sludge boilers when men are cleaning any out. They should be brought out if it is necessary to do so, or isolation valves should be used.

The management promised this should be carried out at this colliery, and I hope it will be the means of preventing a re-occurrence of an accident of this kind here or elsewhere.

Source:

1900 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 536), Durham District (No. 4) by R. D. Bain, H.M. Inspector of Mines, Page: 32 Where to find this report

	Wearmouth, Robert jnr. (died: 17 Oct 1900) , aged 23, Labourer, He was cleaning out a boiler and the boiler-minder sludged some of the other boilers ; some scale had got into and prevented the valve of this boiler shutting closely and there was a slight escape of steam which severely scalded him all over the body. Died on the 17th inst.
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