Mining disasters

Mining has always been considered a dangerous industry because of explosions, cave ins and the difficulty of underground rescue. The worst disaster in British coal mining history is considered to be an explosion that took place at Senghenydd in South Wales.

On the morning of 14^th October 1913, an explosion and fire killed 436 miners, with only 72 bodies being recovered in the wake of the accident. Most of the explosions were caused by firedamp ignitions, followed by coal dust explosions.

Other similar incidents include the Oaks Explosion, which took place at a coal mine in West Riding of Yorkshire in December 1866 and is remembered as one of the worst disasters in England. A series of explosions caused by firedamp ripped through the underground colliery and killed 361 miners and rescuers. The Hartley Colliery disaster took place in January of 1862 and resulted in the deaths of 204 miners, including children. The beam of the pit’s pumping engine broke and fell down the shaft trapping the workers below. The disaster prompted a change in the law that required all colliers to have at least two independent means of escape.

As well as disasters affecting working mines, there have also been disasters that have been the result of the impact of mining, such as the Aberfan disaster in 1966, where a slag heap collapsed killing 116 children at the local school.  

In England, the Oaks explosion remains the worst mining accident, it claimed 388 lives in total. Though fewer died in the initial accident than other accidents, subsequent explosions claimed lives during the night and into the following day. An explosion at the Hulton Colliery claimed the lives of 344 miners and another in Lancashire claimed the lives of over 200, though the official list of casualties differs from those of the community. Explosions were the most common incident at coal mines, though the break down of machinery and cages also caused issues, trapping miners. Such an incident happened during the Hartley Colliery Disaster in 1862, when the pumping engine broke suddenly and fell into the single shaft serving the pit. The beam blocked the shaft and trapped hundreds of miners, the final death toll was 204, most of them died due to a lack of oxygen.

In Cornwall, some of the worst accidents were at East Wheal Rose in 1846, where 39 workers were killed by a sudden flood. At Levant Mine in 1919, 31 were killed when an engine broke down and at Wheal Agar, the cage fell down the shaft killing 12.

During 1850 – 1930, the South Wales coalfield had the worst disaster record because of the increasing number of mines that were being sunk into deeper pits. As a result, there were nearly 40 explosions during this time resulting in the deaths of at least 20 workers a time. The total death toll from such disasters in South Wales was around 3000 people. The four worst incidents were the gas explosion at Senghenydd Colliery in 1913, and explosions at Albion Colliery, Gresford Colliery and Prince of Wales Colliery. Colliers at Morfa and Black Vein were closed after three disasters for being too unsafe to mine.

The worst mining disaster in Scotland is the Blantyre disaster in 1877 which claimed 2017 lives. Other incidents included a cave in and flood at Knockshinnoch, where rescuers spent several days trying to reach 129 miners who were trapped under ground.

A timeline of the worst British mining disasters (with at least 50 fatalities)

25^th May 1812
Felling Colliery Disaster – explosion – 92 fatalities.

24^th December 1813
Felling Colliery – explosion – 22 fatalities, along with 12 horses

3^rd May 1815
Heaton – either flooding or cave in – 72 fatalities

23^rd October 1821
Wallsend Pit – explosion – 52 fatalities, the youngest was 5 years old.

3^rd November 1823
Rainton Pit – explosion – 57 fatalities

18^th June 1835
Wallsend Pit – explosion – 102 fatalities, 4 injured, plus 11 horses

28^th July 1837
Isabella, Union and Lady Pits – flooding – 27 fatalities along with 28 horses

4^th July 1838
Huskar Pit – mechanical failure and flood – 26 fatalities, all children

15^th July 1856
Cymmer Colliery – explosion – 114 fatalities

19^th February 1857
Lundhill Colliery – explosion – 189 fatalities

2^nd March 1860
Burradon Colliery – explosion – 76 fatalities

1^st December 1860
Risca Colliery – explosion – 140+ fatalities

17^th January 1862
New Hartley Colliery – mechanical failure resulting in flooding– 204 fatalities

8^th November 1867
Ferndale Colliery – explosion – 178 fatalities

10^th June 1869
Ferndale Colliery -  explosion – 53 fatalities

8^th March 1870
Astley Deep Pit – explosion – 9 fatalities, 200 injured

14^th April 1874
Astley Deep Pit disaster – explosion – 51 miners fatalities, 91 injured

22^nd October 1877
Blantyre – explosion – 207 fatalities

7^th June 1878
Wood Pit – explosion – 200+ fatalities

11^th September 1878
Abercan colliery – explosion – 268 fatalities

1880
Seaham Colliery – underground explosion – 160 + fatalities

15^th July 1880
Risca Colliery – explosion – 120 fatalities

16^th February 1882
Trimdon Grange – explosion – 69 fatalities

18^th June 1885
Clifton Hall Colliery – explosion – 177 fatalities

23^rd December 1885
Mardy Colliery - explosion – 81 fatalities

28^th May 1887
Udston – explosion – 73 fatalities

5^th September 1889
Mauricewood Colliery – fire – 63 fatalities

26^th August 1892
Parc Slip Colliery – explosion – 112 fatalities

11^th April 1893
Great Western Mine – fire – 63 fatalities

4^th July 1893
Combe Colliery Disaster – 139 miners fatalities

23^rd June 1894
Albion Colliery – explosion – 290 fatalities, as well as 123 pit ponies

30^th April 1896
Peckfield Pit – explosion – 63 fatalities, plus 19 pit ponies

11^th July 1905
Wattstown Colliery – explosion – 119 fatalities

18^th August 1908
Maypole Colliery – explosion – 76 fatalities

16^th February 1909
West Stanley Pit – explosion – 165+ fatalities

1910
Wellington Pit – explosion – 147 fatalities

21^st December 1910
Pretoria Pit at Hulton Colliery – explosion – 344 fatalities

9^th July 1912
Cadeby Main Pit – explosion – 91 fatalities

14^th October 1913
Senghenydd Colliery Disaster – explosion - 439 miners fatalities

12^th January 1918
Minnie Pitt Disaster – explosion – 155 miners fatalities

1^st March 1927
Marine Colliery – explosion – 52 fatalities

6^th August 1936
Warhncliffe Woodmoor Colliery – explosion – 58 fatalities

10^th May 1938
Markham No 1 Colliery – explosion – 79 miners fatalities, 40 injured

1^st January 1942
Syned Colliery – explosion – 57 fatalities

1951
Easington Colliery – explosion – at least 80 fatalities

Additional mining disasters

5^th November 1839
Wellsway Pit – Sabotage, rope lowering miners into pit was cut – 12 fatalities

11^th April 1877
Tynewydd Colliery – flooding – 5 killed, one of the biggest rescue missions in mining history

November 1907
Barrow Colliery – human error – cage was pulled up the shaft before it had been uncoupled – 7 miners killed

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