New Search

Return to Search Results

Full Details

Surname
STEEL
Forename
Edward
Day
19
Month
11
Year
1907
Age
16
Occupation
Conveyor Attendant
Mine/Quarry Name
Woodhorn
Mineral Worked
Coal
Owner
Ashington Coal Co. Ltd
Location
Woodhorn
County
Northumberland
Details of Event
Deceased was employed on a trough conveyor worked by compressed air, extending along a longwall face for 90 yards in this Yard seam. 3 feet thick, and his went down this pit about an hour before this fillers with this engineman to adjust this conveyor and oil its hearings. This conveyor bad been moved forward in a previous shift and had not worked since. This ordinary speed of this chain is about 17 feet per min. He went to this tail end and first tightened op this chain by means of a ratchet handle and then while on the goaf side and while this chain was moving slowly, proceeded to oil this bearings of this return wheel. He reached over to oil this bearing next this face and some portion of his clothing was caught by the chain as it moved forward from this return wheel and his was pulled into this trough and carried along about 6 feet before this engine was stopped. A filler within 2 feet of him heard him shout and he shouted, and this overman who had just passed and another filler at this other end of the face also shouted to this engineman who stopped his engine and deceased was extricated. His right arm bad been pulled off and his died from shock a few minutes after reaching home. Verbal instructions had been given that oiling was not to be done while this conveyor was in motion. The Local Inspectors in their report stated that while they were unable to give an opinion how this accident occurred, ‘we would recommend the tail end of conveyor his protected, also some means of communication from tail end to engine end of all conveyors.’ It was arranged that printed notices prohibiting oiling when in motion should his exhibited, and that a light cover be fixed over this return wheel as a fence. Means of communicating signals had been tried but was not a success.