DOWLAIS. Cardiff, Glamorganshire, 23rd. January, 1893.

The colliery was the property of the Dowlais Iron Company and was at Aberdare Junction. There was a large fall of rock when sinking operations were going on at the colliery. On the morning of the disaster, twenty-seven sinkers descended 265 yards and worked normally until 6 p.m. when a huge boulder in the side of the shaft weighing 7 to 8 tons, suddenly fell down the shaft. Six of the men died and one died later from his injuries.

The men who lost their lives were all sinkers:

  • William Tudor aged 34 years,
  • Henry Caddy aged 38 years,
  • Richard Davies aged 54 years,
  • Robert Roberts aged 32 years,
  • Cad. Williams aged 25 years,
  • John Williams aged 37 years,
  • Godfrey Jones aged 20 years,
  • David Jones aged 46 years.

Mr. Robson reported:

Swansea, 11th February 1893.

 Sir,

 With further reference to the accident at the Dowlais Iron Company’s new sinking, I have the honour to report that I attended the adjourned inquest of the 9th. inst. and from my examination of the shaft on the day following the occurrence, and the evidence given, I came to the conclusion that this sad fatal accident was the result of misplaced confidence in the security of the natural strata sunk through on the part of the agent, Mr. H.W. Martin, Mr. Daniel Lewis, the certificated manager and Mr. William Jones, the master sinker, especially the latter two, as they both had been in the shaft of the day of the accident, and were more directly responsible for the safety of the sinkers employed.

 It may be noted here that the master sinker was an experienced man in such operations, but the manager had had no experience in actually making prior to his taking charge of this sinking about 24th December 1891. The work was being done on shift wages, paid directly by the company, there being no contractor.

 The shaft is being sunk fully 22 feet diameter, which leaves it 20 feet diameter where it is walled, the walling being a foot thick. The large diameter exposes a surface of 70 feet around the shaft. The practice is to sink so many yards, then stop sinking and put in as walling curb within a few yards of the bottom, and the wall up to the last curb put in when sinking is resumed. The distance sunk before a length of walling is put in is decided from time to time by those in authority, and varies according to the kind of strata passed through, the sides being examined daily by the leader of the shift, and a special examination being made once a week. As many as 35 yards have been sunk before a length of walling was put in. The total depth on the day of the accident was about 268 yards, 249 of which had been walled, and sinking was being proceeded with at a depth of fully 19 yards below the last walling, the strata passed through being as follows – 19 feet 6 inches of rock, 3 feet of clift then 36 feet of rock.

 It was a portion of rock immediately above the clift which fell and probably the fall was caused by the clift having softened and fallen out previously, although this was not admitted by witnesses at the inquest. Clift is a kind of shale which is liable to soften with exposure, and especially where wet, as in sinking. In my opinion, it would have been a wise precaution to have secured this bed of clift by cribs round the whole circumference, whereas all that had been done was to secure it in two places where undoubtedly portions of the clift had fallen off or had been pulled off previous to the accident. Then, as soon as the rock below the clift was sunk into, say three or four yards, it would have been a proper course to put in a length of walling instead of continuing so far below the clift.

 I beg to say no provision of the Mines Act or special rules appears to have been violated.

 Signed , J.T. Robson,

 Inspector of Mines.

 

REFERENCES
The Mines Inspector’s Report 1893. Mr. Robson.
The Colliery Guardian, 10th January 1893.

Information supplied by Ian Winstanley and the Coal Mining History Resource Centre.

Return to previous page