Warning To Deputies On Double Tamping

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31345, 15 April 1967, Page 3

Warning To Deputies On Double Tamping

(From Our Own Reporter)

GREYMOUTH, April 14.

An underviewer, Gerald Leech, today told the Commission of inquiry into the Strongman explosion that he had seen no evidence of deputies tamping two shots at once after he had reported an instance to the manager some months before the disaster.

Mr Leech, who was acting manager on the day of the explosion, said that nine months previously he had occasion to warn a deputy about double tamping. The same deputy was warned on a later occasion and on the third time he had been reported to the manager, by whom he was severely reprimanded.

Asked to name the deputy, Mr Leech told the chairman (Mr J. K. Patterson, S.M.) that he would prefer not to “unless you so order me.” He said the deputy was neither Kinsey nor Foster Lynam, the two deputies killed in the explosion. The chairman said he accepted that statement. After the reprimand of the deputy Mr Leech said he had told a meeting of the Deputies’ and Undervlewers’ Union that he would not countenance such actions and the meeting had agreed that the regulations would be fully complied with. Mr Leech was still In the witness box when the hearing adjourned until May 22. Mr Patterson said that was the earliest time the hearing could be resumed. The commission was exceedingly anxious to have avoided a postponement but because of various reasons this was unavoidable.

The other members of the commission are Messrs S. R. Eyeington, a mine manager, of Huntly; Mr W. Elliott, an underviewer, of Ohai; Mr T. H. McGhie, a retired district manager of mines in Buller; and Mr A. V. Prendiville, president of the United Mineworkers of New Zealand.

Mr R. C. Savage, of Wellington, appeared for the Mines Department, Mr D. J. Tucker, of Greymouth, for the State Coal Mines, Mr R. A Young, of Christchurch, for the Grey Valley Deputies* and Undervlewers’ Union, and Mr W. D. Taylor, of Greymouth, for the United Mineworkers. Inspections In Night This morning, David Carlton Syme, a dog-watch deputy, continued his evidence by telling Mr Young of inspections he had made in Kinsey's section during the night, after leaving Green’s section.

On January 19 he did not have a map of the three sections under his control at night—Green’s, Kinsey’s and Slant dip—but he had one now.

When he left the mine he entered his report, bathed and caught the bus at 6.20 a.m. He and the five shiftmen in his sections were<.on the same bus as shiftmen from other parts of the mine.

He said it was the custom for the dog-watch to travel on this earlier bus. Asked if it was correct that the manager did not know about this, he said it was possible as the manager did not arrive until later.

After Explosion

Mr Syme told Mr Young that throughout the night there had been no trace of gas in any of the three sections after the explosion. He had been instructed to take the normal dog-watch shift in. At 1130 p.m. that night he had entered with a mine inspector, a rescue station official and a proto man. A body was found and he had gone into Coghlan’s workplace and had tested it, but there was no gas, only smoke. Normally, he told Mr Young,. miners stopped the fans to provide sufficient air to drive their drills.

To Mr Patterson, he agreed that to drill 13 holes in the face would probably take up to an hour’s work and it was likely that the miners in that place would have had the fan stopped for that period. Dud ing the night inspection he had not inspected the face in O’Donnell’s place for holes. There was a quantity of loose coal on the floor and miners did not drill when loose coal was available. To Mr Young, Mr Syme said his health recently had not been good and he had been under considerable strain.

Asked by Mr Prendiville why the Inspection was made early, he.said this part of his work took three hours. He had followed normal practice in leaving about 6 a.m.

Re-examined by Mr Savage, Mr Syme said it was normal to test for methane in a place with a fan going if it was normal for the fan to be operating.

Placing Of Men

Mr Leech, in evidence, said the mine reopened on Monday, January 16 and the following day he had found on inspection that Green’s section was in very good order with good ventilation. He and the underviewer, Thomas, had inspected O’Donnell’s place. It had not advanced as far as it had on the day of the explosion. Thomas told him he had difficulty in finding a place for Coghlan and Newcombe, who were “floating,” and he had suggested that a temporary place be opened near Mountford’s jig. This would have been done the following day the day before ths explosion. On the morning of the explosion he had checked the report books and compared the barometric readings to see if there had been a change. There was no change. The workmen’s inspectors approached him for a cavil meeting, which was granted. This lasted 35 minutes and the men entered the mine just after 8 a.m. He and the underviewer, McDonald, then went on an inspection of the east heading of the mine. While there he was notified that something had happened. He told McDonald to get his men out and he had rushed about a mile and telephoned the underviewer, Griffiths, on the surface, who confirmed that emergency procedure was being taken. He then went another quarter of a mile where at Scott’s dip, leading into Green's section, he had met the inspectors and Thomas. This was as far as he could go. The face in O'Donnell's section, as shown in a model, was an ill-prepared face. It was not normal to stone-dust in the goaf before and after each shot Testing And Boring He told Mr Taylor that it was natural to test if there was a danger of breaking through. If the test bore broke through to the goaf the firing holes would be bored in relation to this fact.

Whether stone-dusting of the goaf was necessary would depend on examination. If there was an excess of coal dust, stone-dusting would have been an obvious move. Samples of coal dust were taken regularly by a member of the Miners’ Union for analysis.

Mr Leech told Mr Taylor that the booster fan in O’Donnell’s heading was the only one in the section. It was used to assist ventilation when necessary.