DOWLAIS. Cardiff, Glamorganshire. 28th. April, 1906.

The mine was the property of Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds, Limited and the accident was caused by the big link of the chain attaching the haulage rope to a journey of trams breaking. The road on which the accident occurred was the main road from the shaft and it had an outward dip of 3½ inches to the yard down to 1 in. per yard near the shaft.

About 1.45 p.m. on the 28th April a journey of 24 trams of coal had been brought out, and had been held by the tail-rope about 160 yards from the shaft for about 15 minutes, as there was no room on the parting at the bottom of the shaft. The rider gave the signal to lower the journey, and as soon as it moved, the link broke. The journey ran down into a group of men at the shaft who were waiting to ascend and killed five and injured six of them.

Fifteen of the trams were on a dip 2½ inches to the yard, and the last nine were on a 3½ inch to the yard dip. The total weight of the journey would be 55 tons. The link that broke was 5 inches long by 2½ inches wide and was made of one and one eighth diameter B.B. Staffordshire cable iron, with a breaking strain of 32 tons. The strain on the link would be about three tons. The fracture was across the weld and showed crystallisation due to jarring.

The new chain was installed on 17th April, so had been very little work. Mr. Gray, the Inspector, thought the journey was started with a jerk or the chain had been inured by under strain such as would be caused by a full journey becoming derailed while travelling at speed.

The men who died were:

  • Morgan Richards aged 39 years, engineman,
  • Henry Jones aged 38 years, airway man,
  • Herbert Moon aged 31 years, labourer,
  • Ernest Watts aged 31 years, labourer,
  • Alfred Harpur aged 37 years, assistant ripper.

The inquest was held before Mr. Coroner Rhys on the 1st May at the Abercynon Police Court, when all interested parties were present.

Mary Jane Watts identified her husband, Ernest Watts, 91, Cardiff Road who, she said, died at a quarter to six on Saturday evening. Mrs. Emily Harpur, of Norton Bridge, said he husband, Alfred Alexander Harpur aged 37, died at 3.30 on Saturday. Herbert Moon aged 31, single of Wood Street, Clifynydd was identified by his brother, Robert Moon of Cardiff. The other two victims identified were Morgan Richards, airwaymen of Royal Oak, Abercynon and Henry Campbell Jones, airwayman of 38, Gerturde Street, Abercynon.

John Davies, rider at the South Pit for the past six or seven years told the court that he was in charge of the journey of 24 trams. It was the last journey of the day and came from the Seven Deep. He was off the journey in front of the trams when it broke loose. The driver started the engine and Davies saw that it was going faster than usual and shouted to the men below. The journey sped quickly past him. He then ran back to see what had happened and found that a link at the end of the chain joining the journey to the rope had broken. It was the link next to the cap of the rope. When the journey ran wild most of the chain went with it. He picked up the broken link.

The Seven Deep was about 700 yards from the bottom of the pit and as the journey came out from there, the witness rod on the tail. At the place where it came to a standstill, he put on the safety block and did not take it out until he saw that the road was clear. Davies’ butty, Edward Lewis, and he attached a chain to the tail rope. Mr. Gray, the Inspector asked Davies how long they had been running trams of 24 tubs and he replied that this had been done for about two weeks, previous to that they were made up of 22 or 23 trams and only occasionally 24. The trams had been standing at the place for about a quarter of an hour before the accident and Davies did not notice whether it started with a jerk. He told the court that the chain had been checked by tapping it with a hammer of Saturday morning.

Mr. Bruce Jones, the manager of the pit exhibited the plans of the site of the accident on the wall of the court and the leading features were explained. The weight of each tram was 12.5 cwt. and the load on each tram was 30 cwt. The link was made at the pit and was put on new, on the Wednesday before the accident. The ropesman occasionally brought up the chain and passed it through the fire to test it. Mr. Bruce said that he had had some trouble over the past two years by men rushing to the pit bottom long before the time for winding up. To counteract this he had stationed a man at the bottom of one heading to catch the level en and the heading men. he had also stationed a man at the pit parting to intercept men coming up the Big Deep. All were warned not to go into the main parting until the pt had ceased winding up. He had also put notices in the engine-room. The notices read:

Workmen are hereby strictly warned not to leave their working places too soon after finishing their days work. They shall be allowed just sufficient time to enable them to reach the pit bottom at 5 o’clock on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, and 2 o’clock on Mondays and Saturdays. The penalty for infringement will be either one half-day deducted from their wages or instant dismissal.

Mr. Jones said that a number of men had been dismissed and others fined for disobeying the rule, but some of the men had succeeded in dodging the men stationed to prevent them coming out early. he could not say what had made the link break.

Septimus Jones, the engine driver, described bringing the journey out of the Seven Deep, he said:

It had stopped there a quarter of an hour before I received the signal from the driver to send the journey down into the landing. When I received the signal I raised the brake only two or three inches, and immediately I released the brake the level dropped, showing the journey had broken loose. An unusual number of men passed the engine-house that day about 1.30 on their way to the bottom. I had no instruction to warn them, but there was a man on the roadway to do that. Since the chain had been put on the journey had never consisted of more than 24 trams. The brake was in good order.

Robert Grainger, the road examiner, said he had examined the rope at 7.15 on Saturday morning. He tested it by tapping it with a hammer and the sound informed him of its condition.. He told the court that the break in the link was a clean one and there was no flaw in the link. He had never known a link to break before this incident and he thought it had broken due to a twist.

The master haulier, John Thomas, stated that he had instructions to stand by the engine to stop anyone going into the main parting before the haulage ceased. On Saturday a number of men passed before he got to the spot where he usually stood. It had been his duty to do this off and on for four years. On Saturday the men came out of the workings earlier than usual. He had reported men for going into the main road before the haulage ceased but he had not done this recently. The last time he reported a man was about two months before. Some of them had been fines and some dismissed. On that Saturday, he stood in the Big Deep and some men pushed past him and others used him rather roughly, while some slipped past by putting out their lamps and going behind some trams that stood there. William Thomas, the undermanager said that he had stood in another part of the workings keeping the men back and none had slipped by him. Mr. Rhys, the Coroner asked, “Are they frightened of you?” He replied “Oh. I have little trouble with them myself.” The remark prompted laughter in the court.

All the dead were daywagemen and William Stephens, a day repairer gave evidence said that he had known men reported for breaking the rules. John Vaughan, the chief mechanic at the colliery said that the broken link was made of Staffordshire cable iron. This strain on the rope when the journey started would not be more than three tons and they were capable of taking much more than that. The chain might have been twisted and this would throw an extra strain on the link.

Mr. F.A. Gray, the Mines Inspector said that he did not agree that the break was caused by a twist. The link appeared to him to have become crystallised by constant jarring, but the crystallisation could not be seen by an examination nor found by the sounding with a hammer. He thought the weld was very good.

In summing up Coroner Rhys said that the link had proved to be in good order and the cause of the accident was merely guesswork and the men at the bottom of the pit had no right to be there. He pointed out that a great many colliery accidents happened because people would take this risk.

The jury returned the following verdict-

We find that these men lost their lives by an accident caused by the snapping of the link in the chain connecting the trams to the rope. We are satisfied that every precaution had been taking in the material and workmanship of the same.

Coroner Rhys said this was the verdict of “Accidental Death”.

 

REFERENCES
Mines Inspectors Report, 1906. Mr. Gray.

Information supplied by Ian Winstanley and the Coal Mining History Resource Centre.

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