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Full Details

Surname
WARD
Forename
James
Day
15
Month
09
Year
1905
Age
22
Occupation
Labourer
Mine/Quarry Name
St Helens
Mineral Worked
Coal
Owner
Saint Helens Colliery & Brickworks Co. Ltd
Location
Seaton
County
Cumberland
Details of Event
A shaft 17 feet in diameter and was being fitted for coal drawing. Each cage ran in wire rope guides two on each side of the cages placed about 10 feet apart the cages were 13 feet 4 inches long and were to carry three tubs placed end to end on a single deck. at 83 fathoms from from the surface a mid landing at the Main Band was being fitted up four channel irons for each gage 40 feet long extending above and below the landing were being bolted to four girders on each side of and four girders, and on each side of the cage outside the thimbles on the rope guides slippers were fixed to enter these channels which were splayed out at the ends so as to steady the cage at the landing. The centre girders were fixed and the girders at one side were in position but not wedged tight and the channel irons on this side were being bolted up. Decease anf a shaftsman were working from the cage top and had gone to the surface for more bolts and were descending again on the cage top when the cage on entering the channel irons caught something and stuck and the six cage chains dropped a foot or so and deceased fell to the shaft bottom the other man saving himself by clutching teh chains. The engineman felt the loss of weight and at once tighted up the chains. A crab rope extended down the shaft to the girders and was lashed to the centre girder by a hemp rope. This rope was clear of the girders, but higher up came in contact with it. The lashing was intact and it did not appear that that this rope had any connection with teh accident although the banksman stated he saw it twisted round the winding rope. The winch to which the crab rope was attached was fond to be pulled forward but it could npot be proved that this had happened. The winding winch was new and its twist was stated to deflect the cage 2.5 inches.