Disasters

Explosions, floods, collapses and other major incidents at UK mines — including significant post-closure incidents in abandoned workings. Each record is researched to the same standard as a mine or terminology entry, not just a casualty count.

The 100 disasters most recently added, of 809, newest first.

Disaster	Date	Type	Region	Fatalities
Astley Deep Pit explosion, 1874 On 14 April 1874 a roof fall in the Half Moon Tunnel at Astley Deep Pit, Dukinfield, then the deepest coal mine in Britain, released gas that exploded and set the workings on fire, killing 54 men and boys. The jury blamed the bricking-up of a ventilating mouthing and a pit in a state of anarchy.	14 April 1874	Explosion	Greater Manchester	54
Dean Lane Colliery explosion, 1886 On 10 September 1886 firedamp exploded in the Gas Coal seam at the Bedminster Coal Company's Dean Lane Colliery in Bristol, killing ten of the twenty men working there. The inspector found that gas from the coal had seeped through cracks in an arch and fired at a boy's naked light.	10 September 1886	Explosion	Bristol	10
Newbury Colliery explosion, 1869 On 22 October 1869, as the men were going down, firedamp exploded on the Mackintosh side of the Westbury Iron Company's Newbury Colliery at Coleford in the Somerset coalfield. Eleven died, and the jury found three officials guilty of manslaughter.	22 October 1869	Explosion	—	11
Talk o' th' Hill Colliery explosion, 1873 On 18 February 1873 an explosion in the Seven Foot Banbury seam at the North Staffordshire Coal and Iron Company's Talk o' th' Hill Colliery killed all eighteen men and boys working there, six years after the pit's 1866 disaster. Firing a shot was given as the cause of ignition.	18 February 1873	Explosion	Staffordshire	18
Clough Hall Colliery explosion, 1865 On 1 March 1865 a shot fired in a working known to hold gas caused an explosion in the Bullhurst seam at Kinnersley and Co.'s Clough Hall Colliery, Kidsgrove, killing five. The inspector called the shot perfect madness, but magistrates dismissed the case against the manager.	1 March 1865	Explosion	—	5
Methley Junction Colliery explosion, 1875 On 9 December 1875 a fall of roof released gas that exploded in the Haigh Moor seam at H. Briggs and Son's Methley Junction Colliery, near Normanton, killing six. The men went down with safety lamps but changed to candles later in the shift.	9 December 1875	Explosion	—	6
Washington Colliery explosion, 1851 On 19 August 1851 gas fired at a light in Washington Colliery, County Durham, and the explosion killed 34 men and boys, two of them furnacemen who died trying to rescue others. Gas had been showing at the candles for weeks and some men had left their work in fear.	19 August 1851	Explosion	—	34
Hetton Colliery explosion, 1860 On the evening of 20 December 1860 gas that had gathered in a nearly level boiler flue exploded in the Minor Pit of the Hetton Coal Company's colliery at Hetton-le-Hole, killing 22 men and boys. Some 200 had just come up, and only the stonemen and shifters were below.	20 December 1860	Explosion	Tyne and Wear	22
Jarrow Colliery explosion, 1830 At 5.40 a.m. on 3 August 1830 gas exploded in the Bensham seam at Jarrow Colliery, killing 42 men and boys. Seventy of the 120 men and boys in the pit were in the Bensham seam, where the hewers had broken into a fissure from which gas suddenly issued.	3 August 1830	Explosion	Tyne and Wear	42
Darley Main Colliery explosion, 1849 At about 11.20 a.m. on 24 January 1849 firedamp exploded in the Barnsley seam at G. Jarratt's Darley Main Colliery in Worsbrough Dale, near Barnsley, killing 75 of the 101 men and boys underground. It was the worst Yorkshire disaster since the Oaks explosion two years before.	24 January 1849	Explosion	—	75
Aldwarke Main Colliery explosion, 1875 At about 6.20 a.m. on 5 January 1875 gas exploded in the Carr House workings of John Brown & Co.'s Aldwarke Main Colliery, near Rotherham, killing seven men. The jury returned accidental death and called for safety lamps in place of naked lights.	5 January 1875	Explosion	South Yorkshire	7
Oxcroft Colliery explosion, 1919 On Sunday 6 April 1919, while auxiliary fans were being moved, gas exploded in the Creswell Level district of Oxcroft Colliery, near Bolsover, killing six men. The jury found it was fired by an electric spark, probably in a switch box.	6 April 1919	Explosion	Derbyshire	6
South Normanton Colliery explosion, 1937 At about 9 p.m. on 15 February 1937 two explosions tore through the Waterloo seam of South Normanton Colliery's Winterbank pit, killing eight men and seriously burning three. Part of a cigarette was found by one of the dead, and smoking or a struck match was suggested as the cause.	15 February 1937	Explosion	Derbyshire	8
Whiston Colliery explosion, 1878 On Sunday 17 February 1878 an explosion at Whiston Colliery, near Prescot, killed seven men who were sealing off a fire caused by spontaneous combustion in the Main Delf. The jury returned accidental death and praised the manager's efforts.	17 February 1878	Explosion	—	7
Wharncliffe Carlton Colliery explosion, 1883 Just after midnight on 18 October 1883 gas exploded in the dip district of Wharncliffe Carlton Colliery, Barnsley, killing all 20 men on the night shift there. Fire followed, the pit was flooded to put it out, and only 17 bodies were recovered.	18 October 1883	Explosion	South Yorkshire	20
Pemberton Colliery explosion, 1877 On 11 October 1877 firedamp exploded in the Wigan Nine Foot mine of the King pit at Jonathan Blundell & Sons' Pemberton Colliery, killing 36 men and boys, among them the manager and two other officials who went to help. The jury blamed a blown-out shot in Rutter's place.	11 October 1877	Explosion	Greater Manchester	36
Talk o' th' Hill Colliery explosion, 1866 On 13 December 1866 an explosion of gas in the Banbury seam at Talk o' th' Hill Colliery, near Kidsgrove, killed 91 men and boys. The jury found that gas had gathered after a train of coal upset in a doorway and was fired by a naked light unlawfully exposed.	13 December 1866	Explosion	Staffordshire	91
Edmunds Main Colliery explosion, 1862 On 8 December 1862 a shot fired at Edmunds Main Colliery, Worsbrough Dale, lit gas and set the coal on fire, and the explosions that followed killed between 54 and 59 men and boys. The pit had to be flooded, the bodies stayed underground until October 1863, and the families won the first compensation paid in England for an underground explosion.	8 December 1862	Explosion	—	54
Swaithe Main Colliery explosion, 1875 At about 9.40 a.m. on 6 December 1875 firedamp exploded in the Barnsley seam at Swaithe Main Colliery, near Barnsley, killing 143 men and boys. Seventy to eighty escaped through the connected Edmunds Main shaft. The jury could not say how the gas was fired but found the rules had not been kept and gunpowder recklessly used.	6 December 1875	Explosion	South Yorkshire	143
Hindley Green Colliery explosion, 1868 On 25 November 1868 firedamp exploded in the Arley mine at John Scowcroft & Co.'s Hindley Green Colliery near Wigan, killing 62 men and boys. Gas had gathered in a stopped slant and was fired by the flame of a blown-out gunpowder shot next to it.	25 November 1868	Explosion	Greater Manchester	62
Springs Colliery explosion, 1871 Shortly before 11 p.m. on 15 November 1871 firedamp exploded in the Arley mine at John Scowcroft and Co.'s Springs Pit, Hindley Green, after a shot was fired to bring down roof while enlarging a pony road. Six men and boys were killed on the north-east side, the fireman was badly burned, and eleven ponies died.	15 November 1871	Explosion	Greater Manchester	6
Rainford Colliery shaft fire, 1869 In January 1869 the ventilating furnace at Rainford Colliery set fire to the coal pillars left to support the shafts, which were being deepened. Seven men preparing to put the fire out with water were fatally burned when the flame turned on them. The next night two enginemen fell to their deaths when the scaffold over the shaft gave way.	8-9 January 1869	Fire	Merseyside	9
Orrell Colliery explosion, 1901 On Wednesday 10 April 1901 four men salvaging machinery from the just-abandoned Orrell Four Feet at Walthew House, Orrell, were caught when the fireman fired a roburite charge to break an iron cog-wheel. The shot set off a coal-dust explosion that ran along the main roads. Two died at once and two about a week later.	10 April 1901	Explosion	Greater Manchester	4
Tawd Vale Colliery inundation, 1897 On the night of Tuesday 30 November 1897 the River Tawd broke through a fall into old crop workings at Tawd Vale Colliery, Skelmersdale, and poured down through the old Twelve Feet workings and the shafts. The only two men below, a fireman and a hooker-on, were drowned. The colliery was abandoned.	30 November 1897	Flooding / Inundation	Lancashire	2
Swan Lane Colliery explosion, 1868 On 'reckoning Monday', 17 August 1868, when only day men were in Swan Lane Colliery, Hindley Green, the collier Charles Abbott fired gas with his naked light in an unbratticed working place in the Four Feet. Two men who went in after him died in the afterdamp. The owner was fined for neglecting the first general rule.	17 August 1868	Explosion	Greater Manchester	3
Cwm Colliery roof fall, Merthyr, 1886 On the morning of Thursday 28 January 1886 two falls of roof in a stall of the Seven Foot vein at Crawshay Brothers' Cwm Pit, Merthyr Tydfil, killed three men, including the fireman sent to clear the first fall, and injured a fourth. The inquest returned accidental death.	28 January 1886	Collapse / Roof Fall	Merthyr Tydfil	3
Pwllfaron Colliery runaway tram, 1901 On the night of Tuesday 13 August 1901 a runaway set of empty trams overtook the journey on which a pump boy and a rider were travelling down the slant at Pwllfaron Colliery, Glyn-neath. Richard Davies, 16, was killed outright and William Morgan, 20, died of his injuries.	13 August 1901	Haulage / Transport	Neath Port Talbot	2
Pwllfaron Colliery roof fall, 1905 At about half past ten on Tuesday 6 June 1905 a mass of roof about 20 feet square fell in the main road of the Ladysmith level, worked with Pwllfaron Colliery at Glyn-neath. It buried three of six men repairing the road. The inquest returned accidental death.	6 June 1905	Collapse / Roof Fall	Neath Port Talbot	3
Britannic Colliery Llewellyn Pit shaft accident, 1913 At about 1.45 p.m. on Sunday 27 April 1913 the side of the new Llewellyn sinking at Gilfach Goch, beside the Trane Pit, gave way and swept seven men off their staging into the flooded sump. Four were drowned. The mechanical engineer Thomas Thomas went down on a rope and brought the other three out, for which the King decorated him.	27 April 1913	Winding / Shaft Accident	Rhondda Cynon Taf	4
Trane Pit shaft explosion, 1912 At about six on the morning of Wednesday 17 April 1912 firedamp exploded in the Trane Pit at Gilfach Goch, just deepened by the Cambrian Combine, while men on a staging 40 yards down were walling the mouth of a new fan drift. Four were killed and three burned. The inquest blamed a sinker's pipe.	17 April 1912	Explosion	Rhondda Cynon Taf	4
Lan Colliery explosion, 1875 At about half past nine on 6 December 1875 firedamp exploded in the Brass Vein workings of T. W. Booker and Co.'s Lan Colliery at Gwaelod-y-garth, near Pentyrch, killing twelve men and boys outright; four more died within a fortnight.	6 December 1875	Explosion	Cardiff	16
Greenfield Colliery boiler explosion, 1874 On the evening of 9 April 1874 a boiler burst at Greenfield Colliery, Hamilton; one end was flung 150 yards through the roof of the village schoolroom during a meeting, killing three children, and an engine-keeper also died.	9 April 1874	Machinery	South Lanarkshire	4
Deep Pit, Nantyglo explosion, 1847 On Monday 6 December 1847 firedamp exploded in one of the Bailey brothers' coal pits at Nantyglo, attributed to their Deep Pit, killing eight men, among them John Parkes and his two sons, and badly injuring three. The inquest heard that a ventilation door had been ordered but not fitted. The colliers struck afterwards.	6 December 1847	Explosion	Blaenau Gwent	8
Caradog Vale Colliery inundation, 1906 On the afternoon of Tuesday 26 June 1906 the face of a stall at Caradog Vale Colliery, a small level near Gilfach Goch, broke through into flooded old workings. Four colliers drowned, and two more survived six days trapped in the dark before rescuers reached them. The agent and manager were tried for manslaughter and acquitted.	26 June 1906	Flooding / Inundation	Rhondda Cynon Taf	4
Dinas Main Colliery explosion, 1907 At about a quarter past two on the pay Saturday of 14 December 1907 an explosion at Dinas Main Colliery, Gilfach Goch, killed seven of the twelve men underground; the fireman David Meyrick led the other four out through old workings.	14 December 1907	Explosion	Rhondda Cynon Taf	7
Etna Colliery inrush, 1911 On Friday 24 March 1911 Evan Lewis, 44, and his son Thomas John, 14, were drowned when they tapped waterlogged old workings at the end of a heading in the Dulas Isaf (Dylas Isha) level, later Etna Colliery, at Gilfach Goch. Strikers from the Cambrian Combine dispute and soldiers stationed in the village joined the rescue.	24 March 1911	Flooding / Inundation	Rhondda Cynon Taf	2
Neilsland Colliery inrush, 1916 On 26 April 1916 washery sludge used to fill the old No. 3 Eddlewood shaft burst into the Ell Coal workings of John Watson Ltd's Neilsland Colliery, Hamilton, and buried five men.	26 April 1916	Flooding / Inundation	South Lanarkshire	5
Waunwyllt colliery explosion, 1851 Early on Monday 2 June 1851 a naked candle carried into an old working fired gas at Thomas's colliery, Waunwyllt, near Merthyr; three miners were fatally burned and a fourth injured.	2 June 1851	Explosion	Merthyr Tydfil	3
Cwmtillery Colliery roof fall, 1868 Two men taking down the top in a squeezed old road at Cwmtillery Colliery on 29 July 1868 were killed by a fall of roof, hemmed in by the drams they had placed on either side of them.	29 July 1868	Collapse / Roof Fall	Blaenau Gwent	2
Cwmtillery Colliery overwind, 1889 When a cage carrying eight men was overwound at Cwmtillery Colliery on 8 June 1889, two jumped out while it hung from the detaching hooks in the headgear and fell back down the shaft; the six who stayed in were unhurt.	8 June 1889	Winding / Shaft Accident	Blaenau Gwent	2
Merthyr Vale Colliery runaway journey, 1903 On a Saturday afternoon in January 1903 the last full journey of the shift came off the road in No. 1 Pit, Merthyr Vale, and killed two colliers who were walking out along the haulage road.	January 1903	Haulage / Transport	Rhondda Cynon Taf	2
Merthyr Vale Colliery runaway journey, 1900 In March 1900 a journey of trams broke away from its rope at Merthyr Vale Colliery and ran back into two men walking out at the end of their shift, killing both.	March 1900	Haulage / Transport	Rhondda Cynon Taf	2
Aberaman Colliery fall of coal, 1862 A fall of coal killed two colliers holing in the Nine Feet seam at Aberaman Colliery on 21 June 1862.	21 June 1862	Collapse / Roof Fall	Rhondda Cynon Taf	2
Aberaman Colliery explosion, 1858 An explosion of gas at Aberaman Colliery on 20 March 1858 fatally injured two colliers, who died two days later.	20 March 1858	Explosion	Rhondda Cynon Taf	2
Aberaman Colliery roof fall, 1894 On the night shift of 14 November 1894 a shot fired at Aberaman Colliery brought down a fall that buried three men; two were dead when they were dug out two hours later.	14 November 1894	Collapse / Roof Fall	Rhondda Cynon Taf	2
Maritime Colliery cage accident, 1899 Two colliers fell about two hundred yards to their deaths on 17 April 1899 when the cage bringing men up the Maritime Colliery's upcast shaft, in use because the downcast rope had failed, caught and tilted.	17 April 1899	Winding / Shaft Accident	Rhondda Cynon Taf	2
Cannock Chase Colliery shaft accident, 1868 On the morning of 15 May 1868 the flat wire winding rope at No. 4 Pit of the Cannock Chase Colliery snapped as eight men and boys were being lowered, dropping them to the bottom of the shaft. Six died. The inspector traced the break to a hemp 'token' wrapped round the rope that had hidden its decay.	15 May 1868	Winding / Shaft Accident	—	6
Gelli Colliery incline accident, 1897 Early on 29 May 1897 a chain link broke as rubbish trams were hauled up the incline to the top of Gelli Pit, and the runaway trams killed three men on the pit bank.	29 May 1897	Haulage / Transport	Rhondda Cynon Taf	3
Black Vein Colliery haulage accident, 1866 Two colliers riding against the rules on trams being hauled up the long engine slope at the Black Vein pit, Risca, were killed on 7 September 1866 when the trams left the plates.	7 September 1866	Haulage / Transport	Caerphilly	2
Cwmtillery Colliery explosion, 1866 An explosion of firedamp at the Cwmtillery pits on 18 May 1866 burned three men, a father and son among them, who died over the following weeks; the inquest jury blamed a canvas ventilation door left open.	18 May 1866	Explosion	Blaenau Gwent	3
Fochriw Colliery cage accident, 1869 On the afternoon of 6 December 1869 the cage carrying two men down No. 1 Pit at Fochriw broke away about 250 yards from the bottom, killing both; five more died in a similar accident at the colliery six weeks later.	6 December 1869	Winding / Shaft Accident	Caerphilly	2
Mynydd Newydd Colliery explosion, 1869 An explosion of gas at Mynydd Newydd Colliery, near Swansea, on 26 March 1869 killed three colliers, two of them brothers; one of the dead had taken a candle past a danger signal.	26 March 1869	Explosion	Swansea	3
Wallsend Colliery explosion, 1799 An explosion at Wallsend Colliery on 25 September 1799 killed thirteen men and boys, the youngest named victim thirteen years old.	25 September 1799	Explosion	Tyne and Wear	13
Newbottle Colliery boiler explosion, 1832 A steam-engine boiler on Lord Durham's colliery railway at Philadelphia, Newbottle, exploded on the morning of 15 June 1832 while men were repairing it, wrecking the engine house and killing at least eight people, among them children of a family living nearby.	15 June 1832	Explosion	Tyne and Wear	8
Blackwell A Winning Colliery explosion, 1895 At about four o'clock on the morning of Monday 11 November 1895 an explosion ran through the main haulage road of the Low Main seam at Blackwell A Winning Colliery, near Alfreton. Seven of the 23 men on the Sunday night repair shift were killed. A shot of gunpowder fired to remove a projection in the roadway had raised and ignited the coal dust.	11 November 1895	Explosion	Derbyshire	7
Kenmuirhill Colliery shaft accident, 1896 Early on 3 February 1896 the steam pump and pipes hung in a shaft that Dunn Brothers were sinking at Kenmuirhill Colliery, near Mount Vernon, gave way. Two men standing on the platform in the shaft fell about 300 feet and were killed. A third, at the bottom, was rescued alive after three hours.	3 February 1896	Winding / Shaft Accident	Glasgow	2
Hoyland Silkstone Colliery boiler house accident, 1907 On 23 November 1907 six men were taking down an old wall in an underground boiler house at Hoyland Silkstone Colliery, near Barnsley, when a girder collapsed and the roof came in. The fall broke open the boiler and scalded them all. Four died. The deputy in charge, Francis Chandler, whose son was among the dead, was awarded the Edward Medal of the first class for going back three times through the steam.	23 November 1907	Collapse / Roof Fall	South Yorkshire	4
Marston Hall Mine canal burst, 1907 On Sunday 21 July 1907 the flooded workings of the Marston Hall rock-salt mine gave way beneath the Trent and Mersey Canal near Marston, Cheshire. The canal bank burst, a chasm some sixty feet across opened, and half a mile of canal emptied through it. Nobody is recorded as killed, and the breach was repaired in just over two weeks.	21 July 1907	Collapse / Roof Fall	Cheshire	0
Langton Colliery air receiver explosion, 1908 On 10 April 1908 an air receiver burst at the surface of Langton Colliery, Kirkby-in-Ashfield, as men stood near it waiting to go down the shaft, killing two datallers and injuring a third man.	10 April 1908	Machinery	Nottinghamshire	2
Eastern Colliery roof fall, 1885 A fall of stone at Eastern Colliery, Ton Pentre, on 19 March 1885 killed a repairer and a mason.	19 March 1885	Collapse / Roof Fall	Rhondda Cynon Taf	2
Berry Hill Colliery explosion, 1872 On 12 March 1872 an explosion of firedamp at Berry Hill Colliery, Fenton, killed six men. The inquest blamed the careless use of naked lights where gas was present.	12 March 1872	Explosion	Staffordshire	6
Fleets Colliery inrush, 1929 On Friday 1 March 1929 a shot fired to hole into a disused working above Fleets No. 1 Pit, Tranent, released a torrent of water and black damp. George Johnstone, 27, waded back through water to his chin to warn fifty men working deeper in. All were brought out alive that afternoon. The company's officials were later prosecuted.	1 March 1929	Flooding / Inundation	East Lothian	0
Llantrisant Colliery explosion, 1941 On the Whit Monday bank holiday, 2 June 1941, methane that had built up in the No. 2 shaft of Powell Duffryn's Llantrisant (Ynysmaerdy) Colliery exploded at the surface. It wrecked most of the pithead buildings and killed four men, among them the manager. The pit never reopened.	2 June 1941	Explosion	Rhondda Cynon Taf	4
Maindy Colliery cage accident, 1909 On the morning of 6 April 1909 a cage lowering men down the Maindy Colliery shaft at Ton Pentre swung, struck a garland curb and canted, throwing two men some 200 yards to their deaths.	6 April 1909	Winding / Shaft Accident	Rhondda Cynon Taf	2
Aberbaiden Colliery Pentre Slant explosion, 1944 An explosion in the Pentre Slant of Aberbaiden Colliery, north of Kenfig Hill, on the night shift of 10 November 1944 killed four colliers, among them a father and son, and burned three other men.	10 November 1944	Explosion	Neath Port Talbot	4
Manners Colliery gas suffocation, 1893 A man and a boy of the same family were suffocated at Manners Colliery, Ilkeston, on 12 June 1893 by gas coming through a stopping they were building to seal off a fire in the mine.	12 June 1893	Gas / Asphyxiation	Derbyshire	2
Dumbreck Colliery fire, 1938 On Sunday 30 January 1938 a fire broke out at a cable junction box in a haulage road of the No. 1 Pit at Dumbreck Colliery, Kilsyth. Smoke and fumes carried into Kelly's Section, more than a mile from the shaft, and nine men there died of carbon monoxide poisoning; one man escaped.	30 January 1938	Fire	North Lanarkshire	9
Swanwick Colliery cage accident, 1904 On 29 March 1904 a cage carrying six men down the shaft at Swanwick Colliery, Derbyshire, stuck fast in its wooden conductors. Three of the men were thrown out and fell more than seventy yards to the shaft bottom; the other three held on and were rescued about an hour later.	1904	Winding / Shaft Accident	Derbyshire	3
Swanwick Colliery gob-fire suffocation, 1902 Two men working in an airway at Swanwick Colliery that communicated with old workings were found dead on 23 January 1902; a few days later a gob-fire was found to have broken out in the Deep Soft coal.	23 January 1902	Gas / Asphyxiation	Derbyshire	2
Swanwick Colliery shot-firing explosion, 1868 An explosion of blasting powder while shot-firing in hard ground at Swanwick Colliery on 3 March 1868 killed two young colliers.	3 March 1868	Explosion	Derbyshire	2
Swanwick Colliery inundation, 1863 An inrush of water at Swanwick Colliery, near Alfreton, killed two miners on 30 October 1863.	30 October 1863	Flooding / Inundation	Derbyshire	2
Worcester Colliery explosion, 1873 An explosion of firedamp in No. 8 level of Worcester Colliery, Fforestfach, on the evening of 29 August 1873 killed four men; the inspector blamed the manager and fireman, who had both found gas that day, and the manager was fined £10.	29 August 1873	Explosion	Swansea	4
Pentrefron Colliery flooding, 1819 Pentrefron Colliery at Coedpoeth was drowned out by water in September 1819; two men drowned, and a third, John Evans, was found alive in a roof cavity after twelve days, having lived on candles.	27 September 1819	Flooding / Inundation	Wrexham	2
Newlands Colliery roof fall rescue, 1944 A heavy roof fall at Newlands Colliery, Kenfig Hill, in September 1944 trapped two colliers; the under-manager William Jenkins, already twenty-two hours underground, was trapped and injured by further falls but brought both men out, and was awarded the Edward Medal in Silver.	21 September 1944	Collapse / Roof Fall	Bridgend	0
Mary Colliery firedamp explosion, 1908 Late on Sunday 2 February 1908 a series of four firedamp explosions in the Mynheer seam of the Fife Coal Company's Mary Pit at Lochore killed three young men, blown down the shaft from the seam bottom, and burned five others. The inquiry found the gas had been fired by a spark from the electric motor driving the fan.	2 February 1908	Explosion	Fife	3
Kiveton Park Colliery explosion, 1941 An explosion in the Barnsley seam at Kiveton Park Colliery at 10.30 a.m. on 24 June 1941 burned five men. Two had died by the time the Secretary for Mines told the House of Commons two days later, and the colliery's list of the dead shows five deaths from the accident, the last on 5 July.	24 June 1941	Explosion	South Yorkshire	5
Murton Colliery Polka Pit explosion, 1848 An explosion in the Polka Pit, Murton Colliery, near South Hetton, at about half past twelve on 15 August 1848 killed fifteen men and boys, sixteen by another count, among about a hundred underground. Candles were used throughout the mine, and the toll would have been higher had one workman not had the presence of mind to hold the survivors to the shaft.	15 August 1848	Explosion	County Durham	15
Usworth Colliery explosion, 1850 A large blower of gas burst from the Bensham seam in Wellington Pit, Usworth, on the morning of 5 June 1850 and ignited at a candle, killing twelve men and a boy. Nearly 160 people were underground, working by naked light, and the damage to the workings was slight.	5 June 1850	Explosion	Tyne and Wear	13
Crigglestone Colliery explosion, 1941 An explosion of firedamp in No. 1 West District of the Top Haigh Moor seam at Crigglestone Colliery, near Wakefield, on the evening of 29 July 1941 killed 22 men. The Inspector concluded that firedamp in a break had been ignited by a ripping shot fired two and a half hours earlier and burned unseen until it met an explosive mixture.	29 July 1941	Explosion	West Yorkshire	22
Birchrock Colliery explosion, 1909 At about 3.30 a.m. on 1 October 1909 a naked light left in No. 4 heading at Birchrock Colliery, Pontardulais, ignited gas that had built up after brattice sheeting was knocked down, and the explosion killed five men. The jury found the deaths accidental, due to an open lamp, and exonerated the fireman.	1 October 1909	Explosion	Swansea	5
Duke Pit explosion, 1844 An explosion of firedamp in Duke Pit, Whitehaven, on the afternoon of 11 January 1844 killed the eleven haggers who had just gone down for the night shift, and ten or eleven of the pit's horses. The pit, the Earl of Lonsdale's, was thought one of the best ventilated in the district, and miners were used to working with the tops off their safety lamps.	11 January 1844	Explosion	Cumbria	11
Oakley Colliery shaft fire, 1895 On 31 May 1895 the wooden lining of No. 3 Pit, the upcast shaft of Kinneddar (Oakley) Colliery near Dunfermline, caught fire from a ventilating fire lit at its foot that morning. When the lining burned out, flame and hot air were driven over men building stoppings in the Jersey seam; seven were burned and died within a day, and two more fell down No. 2 Pit in the confusion.	31 May 1895	Fire	Fife	9
Hill of Beath Colliery fire, 1901 An underground fire in the east section of the Lochgelly Splint and Parrot seam at Hill of Beath Colliery, Fife, killed seven men on 15 February 1901. The oversman and the fireman went to examine the stoppings that shut the fire off and did not return; a search party led by the manager walked into carbon monoxide in the return airway and most of it was lost.	15 February 1901	Fire	Fife	7
Lochhead Colliery fire and whitedamp, 1907 An underground fire that broke out near the Lochhead shaft in the old Duncan's workings on Sunday 29 December 1907 sent carbon monoxide through the workings to the Victoria shaft at West Wemyss. It killed the fireman John Kilpatrick and Andrew Morris and William Scott, who went down to look for him. George and James Dryburgh, who went down to rescue them, were awarded the Edward Medal.	29 December 1907	Fire	Fife	3
Elgin Colliery Balmule Pit accident, 1859 On 28 December 1859 four colliers were being drawn up the Balmule Pit of the Elgin Colliery near Dunfermline when stones fell on them from the side of the shaft. Two died at once and a third days later. The underground manager and the pit's roadsman were tried for culpable homicide and acquitted.	28 December 1859	Winding / Shaft Accident	Fife	3
Wellwood Colliery Derby Pit fire, 1884 On the night of Sunday 30 March 1884 fire broke out around the underground haulage engine of the Derby Pit at Wellwood Colliery, Dunfermline. Three men who went 500 yards in through the smoke to open a trap door and clear the air were suffocated; the search party that found them barely got back.	30 March 1884	Fire	Fife	3
Muiredge Colliery roof fall, 1896 A fall of roof stone at a longwall face in the parrot coal of Muiredge No. 1 Pit, Buckhaven, on 9 December 1896 buried and killed two young miners, Robert Brown and George Hunter.	9 December 1896	Collapse / Roof Fall	Fife	2
Muiredge Colliery rope break, 1880 On the stormy morning of Sunday 19 December 1880 the winding rope at Muiredge No. 1 Pit, Buckhaven, slipped off its frozen pulley and was cut on the axle, dropping two reddsmen some 80 fathoms down the shaft.	19 December 1880	Winding / Shaft Accident	Fife	2
Benarty Pit firedamp explosion, 1899 Early on Monday 22 May 1899 firedamp exploded in a heading of Benarty Pit, near Kelty, where two men had been repairing a roadway overnight. Joseph Hamilton was killed outright and Michael Casey died within a day; the fireman James Morton, his leg broken, crawled a hundred yards towards safety.	22 May 1899	Explosion	Fife	2
Kirkford Colliery roof fall, 1925 On the afternoon of 2 February 1925 a heavy fall in the Glassee section of Kirkford Pit, Cowdenbeath, buried three miners resting at the end of a roadway; two were dead when a rescue party reached them about three hours later.	2 February 1925	Collapse / Roof Fall	Fife	2
Minto Colliery firedamp explosion, 1920 A firedamp explosion in the Five Feet seam of No. 2 Pit, Minto Colliery, Lochgelly, at about 4 a.m. on 28 May 1920 burned five men, three of them seriously; the brusher William Galloway died in hospital within days. Gas that had accumulated was ignited by a naked lamp.	28 May 1920	Explosion	Fife	1
South Garesfield Colliery carbon monoxide accident, 1929 On 17 May 1929 the deputy and shotfirer Richard Lowes and two pony drivers, William Matthew Malcolm, 14, and Joseph Taylor, 16, died of carbon monoxide in the Victoria seam of South Garesfield Colliery after blasting in a district with almost no air. Rescue parties saved others and five men received the Edward Medal.	17 May 1929	Gas / Asphyxiation	Tyne and Wear	3
St Helen's Colliery explosion, 1922 An explosion of firedamp in Ditchburn's Level in the Ten Quarters seam of No. 3 Pit, St Helen's Colliery, Workington, at about noon on 27 November 1922 killed six men. The inquiry found that a shot fired by the deputy James Johnstone, an unnecessary and overcharged top brushing shot, had emitted the flame that ignited gas.	27 November 1922	Explosion	Cumbria	6
St Helen's Colliery explosion, 1888 An explosion at No. 3 Pit, St Helen's Colliery, a mile north of Workington, on the evening of 19 April 1888 killed 30 men. It followed a fire that began in the morning when a shot at the face of Hogg's brow ignited firedamp, and the Inspector concluded that coal dust carried the blast down the engine dip to the downcast shaft.	19 April 1888	Explosion	Cumbria	30
Seaton Burn Colliery boiler explosion, 1881 A steam boiler explosion at Seaton Burn Colliery on Monday 14 March 1881 killed a mason and a labourer.	14 March 1881	Machinery	Tyne and Wear	2
Seaton Burn Colliery boiler explosion, 1860 On the morning of 2 April 1860 a boiler at Seaton Burn Colliery exploded beside a pit-head crowded with men waiting to go down, hurling its six-ton shell 150 yards across the North Road and killing four men.	2 April 1860	Machinery	Tyne and Wear	4
Hartford Colliery cage accident, 1909 On the morning of 20 July 1909 four men lowered down the shaft at Hartford Colliery, Cramlington, fell out of the cage to the bottom and were killed: the fitters' labourers Anthony Clarke and William Dickson, the fitter Frederick Robinson and the electrical engineer John Sturdy.	20 July 1909	Winding / Shaft Accident	Northumberland	4
Newburgh Colliery gas explosion, 1914 A gas explosion at about 10.35 p.m. on Sunday 16 August 1914 in a pair of headings at Newburgh Colliery killed the chargeman Samuel Ainsley and Stephen Hume, who died the following day, and slightly injured a third man.	16 August 1914	Explosion	Northumberland	2
Elswick Colliery inrush, 1900 Water from unknown old workings broke into the Beaumont seam at South Elswick Colliery, Newcastle, early on 4 May 1900; about thirty men raced it to safety, but two hewers were drowned and not recovered for a month.	4 May 1900	Flooding / Inundation	Tyne and Wear	2
Stargate Colliery explosion, 1826 A firedamp explosion at about 3 a.m. killed 38 men and boys, twenty men and eighteen boys, as they went down to the Brockwell seam at Stargate Pit; it left nineteen widows and sixty-two children without fathers.	30 May 1826	Explosion	Tyne and Wear	38