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Full Details

Surname
THOMSON
Forename
Thomas
Day
13
Month
10
Year
1927
Age
Occupation
Mine/Quarry Name
Shettleston, Nos 3 & 4 Pits
Mineral Worked
Coal
Owner
Mount Vernon Colliery Co. Ltd
Location
Shettleston
County
Lanarkshire
Details of Event
Information from the Mines Inspector's report - 1927: Explosion: At Shettleston 3/4 Colliery, on 13th October, an explosion of gas occurred through which five men were burned, one of them so severely that he died four days later. The seam was being worked under Special Regulations, whereby no naked light was permitted within 20 yards of the working face. The miners worked with electric hand lamps and the drawers with electric cap lamps, the only flame safety lamp being that in possession of the fireman, so that the miners had no means of knowing when gas was present except through the fireman. They had been informed their working places were in order in the morning and worked till 9.25 a.m., when an explosion occurred which traversed three working faces, and burned the facemen there. There was little damage done underground, but 15 hours elapsed before the places could be entered, and in one of them a box of matches was found near the roadhead. Next day Mr. Roberts, Junior Inspector, found a spent match near the same place. As the men had very good light from their electric lamps, which were all found in order afterwards at the Mines Department Testing Station, the only reason a man could have for lighting a match would be to smoke. The whole circumstances go to show the uselessness of half measures. The whole seam should have been worked with safety lamps, and no matches or other smoking material allowed in the Colliery.