COLLIERY TRAGEDY

Evening Star, Issue 20173, 13 May 1929, Page 11

COLLIERY TRAGEDY

EIGHT MEN PERISH SURVIVORS' GRAPHIC STORY i ! Eight miners lost their lives in a i disaster at Coombs Wood Colliery, i Halesowen, Worcestershire, on March IS. The men were trapped by fire which broke out shortly alter they had begun work, and it was not until alter an all-day light with the llames than- their bodies were recovered. .Nine men were cut oft when the fire was discovered, hut one of them dashed through the lianies and smoke and escaped Unhurt. After he had reached safety he stated: “ J. begged the others to come with me. but they would not do so.” They feared their position would be macic worse by taking the risk. Pathetic scenes were witnessed at the pithead while the rescue work was in progress. Grief-stricken wives and mothers of the entombed men waited for news throughout the day. ami at one time the crowd numbered about 2.000. This is the most serious colliery disaster since February last year, when thirteen officials lost their lives lin the Haig Pit, Whitehaven. It is ; the first serious accident which has | taken place at Coombs Wood pit since j it was opened nearly twenty years ago. ; The man who escaped was Jabez F.d- ---| wards, aged fifty-six. Seven of the ! victims were married and one leaves • seven children. • STORY OF THE DISASTER. I An official of the owners of the colI liery stated: ‘‘The men went down the i pit "at 7 a.m., and it was twenty j minutes later that word, went round ! that fire had broken out. Wc immediI atcly hurried to the spot where the nine men had been working. “ Jabcz Edwards escaped without injury, hut, although we shouted for some time, there was no reply from the other eight in.r.i. Two rescue parties immediately got to work, but were unable to penetrate through the thick smoke and iumes. It was 4 o'clock before they reached the men, who were found to fie dead. It was apparent that they had been dead some hours. The part where the fire broke out was •500yds from the bottom of the pit shaft.” Edwards, the man who escaped, gave the following graphic description of what occurred :— •* We were just going to work, and when we were near our stall I turned round and noticed i the canvas damp sheet was in flames. I It was burning fiercely. J and two or three other men tried to get back to the return airway, but could not do so as the smoke was too strong. Nor could we hold any light. We found a place where we could breathe a bit, as the smoko was not so thick, and sat down for about a quarter ol an hour.

•' I then made two attempts to get out, but could not get through the smoke, f begged the other chaps to come ■with me, hut (hey would not do so. and said wo should get down in the road and should be in a worse position. However. I made a (Idl'd attempt, and, by putting my cap in front of my month, dashed through it. "The chaps rescuing us heard me coming and collared me. After I got away I did not know what would happen. In the place where T left the other men the smoke was only thin. There seemed to be more air. and if it kept like that they should have been all right." STATEMENT BY DOCTOR.

Dr H. \V. Bland, who assisted for many hours in tile rescue efforts, stated that the men must have been overwhelmed by the fumes within a few minutes of the outbreak of lire. “ After one man had dashed through the flames,” he said. the others must have found the heat and smoke too intense. Carbon monoxide fumes must have swept over them and killed them before they could make any further efforts to escape. I base this

opinion on the foots tliat when wo reached the bodies the nuni had obviously been dead some hours, and that one man had been burnt by a candle which he was holding. lie must have lit it to try and iind a way of escape and died before it had burned, to the end. “ The men were cut oil' from the Surlace by a curtain oi lire, and tba rescue workers were unable to penetrate it. We realised after several unsuccessful attempts that the only way to reach the men was first lo quell the flames.

“ Miners and others quickly organised a bucket service. A line of men covered the distance of several hundred yards which separated the water supply from the scene of the fire, and pails of water were passed along tho line. A hose was also got lo work. When there appeared to bo a decrease in the fierceness of the lire efforts were made to dash through, but time and again the men were forced hack. One fireman was burned and had to giva up. It was not til! late in the afternoon that ‘safety men’ with ■ masks were able to get through. ‘■•Rescue work was made more difficult by the fact that the beams supporting the colliery roof caught fire, and led to a collapse of part of the roof. Some of the debris bad In bo dug away. This fall, however, assisted in putting out the flames. The men were found quite dose together. Apparently they realised that .it would, be hopeless to retreat, and that their only hope of safety was to dash through the flames.”