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Full Details

Surname
BIRCH
Forename
Arthur
Day
03
Month
12
Year
1929
Age
Occupation
Mine/Quarry Name
Viewpark
Mineral Worked
Coal
Owner
Robert Addie & Sons Collieries Ltd
Location
Viewpark
County
Lanarkshire
Details of Event
Information from the Mines Inspector's report - 1929: Falls of roof  At Viewpark Colliery, Lanark two repairers were engaged in enlarging a main haulage road where the supports consisted of girders with props under each end, or, in some cases, one end needled into the hard side. It appears as if the third and fourth girders back from the point at which the men were enlarging the road, some side stone slipped and displaced the end props from under these girders.  The roof was very friable, and both men were buried under the fallen girders, packing timber and small material. Further falls took place during rescue work.  There were distance pieces between the girder webs, but if the end props have been firmly laced and had each had a clip in front to prevent it being driven out, the chance of accident would have been minimised.  Wooden propping under the ends of the girders is never thoroughly satisfactory in soft material, and steel arching is safer on such roads.