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Details of Event: One of the shafts had recently been sunk from the Middle seam a distance of 223 yards to the Black Bed and enlarged from 10 feet to 18 feet diameter for a depth of several yards from the surface. It was decided not to work the lower seams at present but to utilise the shaft for the Middle Seam. The scaffold was put in 28 feet below Middleton Seam, around the edge of which space was left and an 18in. diameter air pipe passed through and was connected with the upcast shaft for the purpose of ventilating the lower portion of the shaft. Places had been driven in the Black Bed Seam 198 yards below the Middleton Seam a distance of 145 yards and the porches formed in them. On the day in question deceased and other five men were engaged putting wire rope guides them. When seven had been put in the eighth and last was being got off the reel by the winding engine at the surface when it caught on a flaming paraffin lamp and knocked it off a girder on the men 28 feet below the Middleton Seam. The oil was spilled and burned immediately an explosion occurred and the six men were more or less seriously injured. The others fortunately recovered, but he died on 30th March. About 15 yards of water had accumulated above the places driven in the Black Bed seam and some gas had burst through the water and come up and had been ignited by the burning on the scaffold.