MineArchiveDisasters
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 1411, newest first.
| Disaster | Date | Type | Region | Fatalities |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edmonstone Colliery shaft collapse, 1839 At about half past ten on the night of Friday 8 March 1839 the lined shaft of an Edmonstone Colliery pit, leased by Alexander and Mowbray Stenhouse, gave way some forty or fifty yards down, entombing nine men and four women and girls. After two failed attempts to reach them, they groped through a flooded air passage to a neighbouring pit and were all brought up alive on the Sunday morning, 36 hours after they went down. |
8 March 1839 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Midlothian | 0 |
| Robroyston Colliery overwind, 1924 At about quarter past ten on the night of 28 March 1924, as the back shift came up and the night shift went down at Robroyston Colliery, the winding engine overwound. The ascending cage, with eight men, smashed into the headgear beams; the descending cage, with six, crashed into the sump. All fourteen were injured and five died. |
28 March 1924 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Glasgow | 5 |
| Quarrelton Colliery inrush, 1818 On the morning of 2 May 1818 miners at Mr Houston's Quarrelton pit by Johnstone took the coal too close to an old pit full of water, and it broke in. Of those cut off, five died; two were found alive ten days later, having lived on pit water and three pieces of oatcake found in the pockets of men who escaped. |
2 May 1818 | Flooding / Inundation | Renfrewshire | 5 |
| Carbarns Colliery explosion, 1900 At a quarter to one on 12 February 1900 the manager, oversman, fireman and an oncostman at Carbarns Colliery, Wishaw, were trying to clear firedamp from a new heading in the Ell Coal when it exploded. The manager, Henry Danks, was killed; the oversman, fireman and oncostman also died. |
12 February 1900 | Explosion | North Lanarkshire | 3 |
| Starlaw Shale Pit fire, 1870 Shortly after the furnace was fired at about half past eleven on 9 April 1870, soot on the timber lining of the upcast at Starlaw shale pit near Bathgate caught fire. A first attempt to douse it seemed to succeed, but the fire broke out again; eight miners were killed and several others badly burned. |
9 April 1870 | Fire | West Lothian | 8 |
| Bogles Hole Pit explosion, 1846 At about four on the morning of Monday 28 September 1846 a shift of five men and a boy went down Bogles Hole Pit at the Clyde Iron Works, Tollcross. A ventilation door had been left open since Saturday and firedamp had filled the back mine; the oversman led them in with a naked light and the gas exploded, killing all six. |
28 September 1846 | Explosion | Glasgow | 6 |
| Dykehead Colliery fire, 1861 Around midday on 7 August 1861 the wooden lining at the bottom of the shaft of Dykehead (Summerlee) Colliery, east of Hamilton, caught fire with some forty-five men and boys below. Fire engines quenched the flames and volunteers were lowered to bring the men out, but twelve died of chokedamp underground and one more a fortnight later. |
7 August 1861 | Fire | South Lanarkshire | 13 |
| Commonhead Colliery explosion, 1850 Just after six on the morning of 23 July 1850, nineteen men went down Commonhead pit at Airdrie, idle since the Saturday. The oversman, Alexander Willison, had barely gone forward to examine the workings when firedamp exploded. Seventeen were killed; only his brother James, near the shaft bottom, escaped. The owners were charged with culpable homicide. |
23 July 1850 | Explosion | North Lanarkshire | 17 |
| Victoria Pit explosion, Nitshill, 1851 At about twenty to five on the morning of Saturday 15 March 1851 firedamp exploded in the Victoria Pit at Nitshill, owned by the Coats family of Paisley. Of the 63 men and boys below, 61 were killed; two were brought out alive after 45 hours. It was reckoned at the time the worst loss of life in a Scottish mine. |
15 March 1851 | Explosion | Glasgow | 61 |
| Hayeswood Colliery inrush, 1845 Early on 4 February 1845, with almost a hundred men and boys underground at Hayeswood Colliery, Timsbury, the workings broke into old flooded ground for which there were no plans. The water rushed in about a mile from the shaft; most escaped in the dark, but seven men and four boys drowned. The pit never recovered from the flood. |
4 February 1845 | Flooding / Inundation | Somerset | 11 |
| Wallsend Colliery explosion, 1790 On 4 October 1790 an explosion at Wallsend Colliery, north of the Tyne, killed seven people. It was one of a run of explosions at the colliery in its first sixty years, after those of 1785 and 1786 and before the larger losses of 1799, 1803, 1821 and 1835. |
4 October 1790 | Explosion | Tyne and Wear | 7 |
| Wallsend Colliery Edward Pit explosion, 1925 At 6.50 on the morning of Sunday 9 August 1925 firedamp exploded around an electric coal-cutter in the Yard Seam of the Edward Pit, Wallsend. Four machinemen were killed by burns and shock and a fifth man died of afterdamp trying to get out. The inspector blamed lax inspection and ventilation on a 550-yard face that depended on a single brattice sheet; the agent and manager were fined. |
9 August 1925 | Explosion | Tyne and Wear | 5 |
| Ferndale No. 5 Pit cage accident, 1910 On 22 September 1910 a cage lowering twelve men and boys at D. Davis and Sons' Ferndale collieries crashed onto the sump boards near the bottom of the shaft. The gates burst open and the men were thrown out; all twelve were hurt, a youth, Thomas Pope, was killed, and Charles Mason died after his leg was amputated. |
22 September 1910 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Bishwell Colliery locomotive collision, 1883 On the afternoon of 5 May 1883 the Bishwell Colliery locomotive, coming down from the pit to the Great Western line at Gower Road with loaded wagons behind it, ran into wagons on the siding at a blind curve. The driver, Thomas Lewis, and Edward Davies were killed outright, and one of two boys riding home on the engine was badly injured. |
5 May 1883 | Haulage / Transport | Swansea | 2 |
| Cwmneol Colliery shaft accident, 1883 In March 1883 two London contractors, Charles Eely and James Sancto, were coating the steam pipes in the upcast shaft of the Powell Duffryn Company's Cwmneol pit at Cwmaman when the crab lowering their bucket ran wild. They fell some 150 yards into five or six feet of water at the bottom and were killed; the man working the windlass had his arm broken. |
March 1883 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Tynybedw Colliery shaft accident, 1882 On 6 November 1882 the rope broke in the upcast shaft at Tynybedw Colliery, Pentre, and the mechanic Samuel Phillips and his assistant, William Jones, fell to their deaths. The inquest jury blamed the agent and manager for failing to see that the rope was properly examined. |
6 November 1882 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Henwaun Colliery locomotive accident, 1872 On the evening of 4 March 1872 the locomotive that ran between the Blaina ironworks and the Henwaun pit, returning empty and driven fast, jumped the rails near Club Row and turned over. Workers going home, mostly young women, were riding on its tender and buffers; a mother and her thirteen-year-old daughter were killed and several others hurt. |
4 March 1872 | Haulage / Transport | Blaenau Gwent | 2 |
| Hook Colliery explosion, 1871 At about eight on the morning of 22 November 1871, just after the men had gone down, firedamp exploded in Hook Colliery on the Western Cleddau, about four miles from Haverfordwest. Some seventeen men and boys were burned. The first reports expected no deaths, but two colliers, Joseph James and John Phillips, died. |
22 November 1871 | Explosion | Pembrokeshire | 2 |
| Tylecoch Colliery explosion, 1866 On 21 August 1866 the mining engineer William Bedlington of Whitchurch, about 57, and Enoch Francis, the owner's contractor, were killed by an explosion of firedamp while examining the long-disused Four Foot level of Tylecoch Colliery in the Rhondda Fawr. The day before, gas had stopped Bedlington finishing his survey. |
21 August 1866 | Explosion | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Lletty Shenkin Colliery explosion, 1853 On 15 September 1853 firedamp exploded in Level No. 1 of Lletty Shenkin Colliery at Cwmbach, near Aberdare, while 49 men and boys were at work. Two door boys, David Thomas, 11, and John Williams, 12, were killed and the collier William Rees died of his burns. A coroner's jury found the manager, David Sims, guilty of manslaughter, but he was acquitted at the Assizes. |
15 September 1853 | Explosion | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 3 |
| Crimea Colliery explosion, 1858 In August 1858 firedamp exploded in the Crimea or Cyfing pit at Ystalyfera, belonging to Thomas Walters of Swansea, as twelve men who had been sitting and smoking by naked lights near the shaft bottom rose to start work. Six were killed, among them the overman, David Jones, and his sons of fourteen and twelve, and three were injured. The inspectors found the western workings unventilated. |
August 1858 | Explosion | Neath Port Talbot | 6 |
| Basset and Grylls Mine inrush, 1858 On 24 August 1858 the floor of an old shaft at Porkellis, filled to three or four fathoms with dressing-floor waste and covered by half an acre of tin slimes, gave way. Slime and water poured down through the 24 fathom crosscut into the deep workings, where some fifty men ran for their lives; seven were buried. The ground fell in over about 2,000 square fathoms and the bodies could not be recovered. |
24 August 1858 | Flooding / Inundation | Cornwall | 7 |
| Stanrigg Colliery inrush, 1918 Between ten and half past ten on the morning of 9 July 1918 liquid peat moss broke through into the shallow Humph seam workings of McCracken Brothers' Stanrigg and Arbuckle Colliery near Airdrie. Fifty-eight men and boys escaped, but nineteen in the Humph section were cut off. Boreholes found the workings under water by the second day; eight bodies were recovered and eleven remain entombed. |
9 July 1918 | Flooding / Inundation | North Lanarkshire | 19 |
| Foggs Colliery cage accident, 1907 Just after four in the afternoon of 4 October 1907, as men were being wound up at the end of the shift, the ascending cage at Foggs Colliery, carrying ten men on its upper deck, struck the descending cage where they passed in the old downcast shaft. Its rope was pulled from the capping, the safety catches failed, and the cage fell to the bottom of the shaft, crashing into the water of the sump. All ten men were killed. |
4 October 1907 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Greater Manchester | 10 |
| Foggs Colliery fire, 1877 About ten in the morning of Wednesday 7 February 1877 smoke poured from the upcast at Foggs Colliery, Darcy Lever, as a fire swept the Doe mine workings. About forty men were wound up, but ten in the furthest workings were suffocated. Rescue parties with respirators were driven back, the pit was sealed, and a second explosion wrecked the surface the next morning; the last bodies were not recovered until July. |
7 February 1877 | Fire | Greater Manchester | 10 |
| Raglan Colliery roof fall, 1903 At about half past ten on the night of Thursday 15 January 1903 a fall of rock several tons in weight came down on two colliers holing under the No. 3 Rhondda seam at Hedley's Raglan Colliery, Heol-y-Cyw, killing George Britten, 32, and John Leyshon, 18. Men in the next stall saw it fall; both were dead when they were dug out after midnight. |
15 January 1903 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Bridgend | 2 |
| Lower Duffryn Colliery electrocution, 1911 Two excavators, John G. Christy and George Young, were electrocuted at the Powell Duffryn Steam Coal Company's Lower Duffryn Colliery near Mountain Ash on 9 May 1911. |
9 May 1911 | Machinery | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Penllwyngwent Colliery runaway journey, 1910 Early on Wednesday 9 February 1910, as the night shift walked up the steep 'B' drift of Cory Brothers' new Penllwyngwent Colliery at Ogmore Vale, a runaway journey of empty trams crashed into another journey below them. Matthew Wilson was killed outright, Thomas Meyrick died being carried home, and Richard Williams was seriously injured. |
9 February 1910 | Haulage / Transport | Bridgend | 2 |
| Blaenclydach Colliery dam burst, 1910 On the afternoon of Friday 11 March 1910 water dammed in the abandoned Blaenclydach No. 2 level on the mountainside above Clydach Vale burst out as men drove a borehole through the barrier. Some 800,000 gallons of water and slurry swept down onto the school in Oak Street and the houses and shops around it, killing a mother and five children. |
11 March 1910 | Flooding / Inundation | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 6 |
| Fochriw Colliery explosion, 1870 Late on Saturday 30 April 1870 firedamp exploded at the stables of the Dowlais Iron Company's No. 2 Vochriw pit, killing the two horse-keepers, Robert Hughes and Thomas Jones, and fifteen horses. Only the two men were in the pit; the inquest found that doors left open by the ostlers had let gas collect and then carried it to the stable light. |
30 April 1870 | Explosion | Caerphilly | 2 |
| South Rhondda Colliery roof fall, 1916 On 4 November 1916 Thomas Perkins and Caleb Tomlin went back down the new Tynycoed drift of the South Rhondda Colliery at Llanharan to attend the pump and were buried by a fall of soft wet ground. So much debris filled the drift that their bodies were not recovered for three weeks. |
4 November 1916 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Penydarren Colliery explosion, 1879 An explosion of gas in a Dowlais Iron Company pit at Penydarren at about two in the morning of Sunday 23 March 1879 killed the haulier Matthew Rees and burnt the rest of a ten-man repairing shift but one. |
23 March 1879 | Explosion | Merthyr Tydfil | 1 |
| Penydarren Colliery sinking accident, 1870 On Friday 3 June 1870 five sinkers being lowered down the shaft of a new pit the Dowlais Iron Company was sinking near Cwm Bargoed fell to the bottom when the rope slipped off the drum of the hand winch. Owen Williams and John Jenkins were killed and the other three badly injured. |
3 June 1870 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Merthyr Tydfil | 2 |
| Bryn Navigation Colliery roof fall, 1956 In April 1956 Arthur Wanklyn and David Davies were killed under the same fall of roof at the National Coal Board's Bryn Navigation Colliery near Maesteg; it took four hours to reach them. |
April 1956 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Neath Port Talbot | 2 |
| Bryn Navigation Colliery roof fall, 1918 Two brothers from Cwmavon, David John and Jonathan Stephens, were killed by a fall of roof while working in the same stall at the Bryn Navigation Colliery on Friday 5 April 1918. They were completely buried and their bodies were recovered some hours later. |
5 April 1918 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Neath Port Talbot | 2 |
| Braichycymmer Colliery roof fall, 1907 At about midnight on Tuesday 25 June 1907 a big fall in a new drift being driven at Pontycymmer to win the Victoria seam buried three men. Joseph Toman was killed; the contractor David Davies was dug out alive after about twenty hours of dangerous rescue work but died soon after; John Maloney was freed injured. |
25 June 1907 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Bridgend | 2 |
| Dyffryn Main Colliery overwind, 1878 On 26 February 1878 the cage carrying seven night-shift men up the shaft at the Bryncoch Main Colliery, near Neath, was overwound into the headgear. Two men fell to the bottom and were killed and another was badly hurt; the inquest returned accidental death. |
26 February 1878 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Neath Port Talbot | 2 |
| Ty Trist Colliery shaft accident, 1905 On 15 December 1905 two men lowered into the No. 1 shaft at Ty Trist Colliery, Tredegar, to repair a burst steam-pipe joint were overcome by the escaping steam and fell to the pit bottom. Two men who went up the shaft to find them were nearly suffocated. |
15 December 1905 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Blaenau Gwent | 2 |
| Cwmpennar Colliery incline collision, 1886 On the evening of 9 December 1886 men riding up the Powell Duffryn Company's self-acting incline at Cwmpennar to the George Pit were run into by descending coal wagons when a stone jammed the points. Five died and several more were injured; the inquest found the evidence of how the stone got there inconclusive. |
9 December 1886 | Haulage / Transport | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 5 |
| Caedefaid Colliery roof fall, 1875 A fall of roof in the Caedefaid level at Maesteg buried three men at about four o'clock on the afternoon of 31 August 1875. They lay trapped until the fireman found them the next day; all three died. |
31 August 1875 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Bridgend | 3 |
| Glanddu Colliery roof fall, 1875 A stone of about five tons fell from the roof of the shared Glanddu level near Pengam on 21 May 1875, killing two colliers riding in to work and injuring three. The coroner's jury found their employer guilty of manslaughter for leaving the road unexamined; the grand jury threw out the bill. |
21 May 1875 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Caerphilly | 2 |
| Graig Colliery sinking explosion, 1892 Late on 26 February 1892 gas that had gathered in the sinking at the Graig Pit, Aberdare, exploded at the sinkers' candles, killing the banksman John Evans and burning eleven men; the inquest found the officials had not written up their inspections. |
26 February 1892 | Explosion | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 1 |
| Cefn Brithdir Colliery inrush, 1888 On the evening of 22 August 1888 two firemen opening up an old heading at the 'George Inn' colliery at Brithdir, near New Tredegar, disturbed a stopping holding back water and were drowned when it burst out. |
22 August 1888 | Flooding / Inundation | Caerphilly | 2 |
| Hollybush Colliery boiler suffocation, 1881 On the morning of Sunday 18 December 1881 four men working on a pumping engine and its boiler underground at Hollybush Colliery, between Blackwood and Tredegar, were suffocated when the workings filled with fumes. |
18 December 1881 | Gas / Asphyxiation | Caerphilly | 4 |
| Vivian Colliery sinking explosion, 1890 On Monday 8 December 1890, while the new Vivian pit at Six Bells, Abertillery, was being sunk, part of a dynamite charge that had failed to fire the night before exploded as the sinkers broke up the debris, killing three men and injuring six. |
8 December 1890 | Explosion | Blaenau Gwent | 3 |
| Machen Colliery explosion, 1858 On 26 April 1858 gas exploded at Augustus Morgan's colliery at Machen in the lower Rhymney valley; three men and a boy died of their burns, and the inquest heard that a safety lamp found at the scene had a faulty clasp. |
26 April 1858 | Explosion | Caerphilly | 4 |
| Castle Pit explosion, 1895 In the early hours of a July morning in 1895 gas exploded in the Four Feet seam at Castle Pit, Troedyrhiw, south of Merthyr Tydfil, burning three rippers so badly that all three died of their injuries. |
July 1895 | Explosion | Merthyr Tydfil | 3 |
| Upper Bank Pit inrush, 1905 Shortly before midday on 27 November 1905 water burst into a level at Upper Bank Pit, Llansamlet, with about 150 men underground; all escaped, the last of them a boy found unhurt in a tram that the flood had washed into the timbers. |
27 November 1905 | Flooding / Inundation | Swansea | 0 |
| Moreton Colliery explosion, 1870 On a Friday morning at the end of September 1870 gas exploded at a naked light in the newly deepened pit at Moreton Colliery, Saundersfoot, killing two boys and burning eight others. |
Late September 1870 | Explosion | Pembrokeshire | 2 |
| Moreton Colliery explosion, 1860 At seven in the morning of 20 October 1860 firedamp exploded in a heading of Moreton Colliery near Saundersfoot, ten minutes after the men had gone in with a mix of safety lamps and naked candles, killing three and injuring eight. |
20 October 1860 | Explosion | Pembrokeshire | 3 |
| Callands Pit explosion, 1816 On the morning of 5 January 1816 fire-damp exploded at the Pentre Colliery near Swansea, whose pumping shaft was Calland's Pit, killing two men and dreadfully burning five others. |
5 January 1816 | Explosion | Swansea | 2 |
| Westernmoor Colliery inundation, 1878 On the morning of Tuesday 16 April 1878 a stall at Westernmoor Colliery, a small slant near Neath, broke into old workings abandoned more than a century before, and the rush of water and debris drowned three men and a boy of fourteen. |
16 April 1878 | Flooding / Inundation | Neath Port Talbot | 4 |
| Caepontbren Colliery explosion, 1912 On 1 November 1912 a spark from the electric signalling system at New Caepontbren Colliery, Pontyates, ignited gas, and four men, a mechanic and three hitchers, were badly burnt. |
1 November 1912 | Explosion | Carmarthenshire | 0 |
| Glynhebog Colliery explosion, 1900 On 28 May 1900 a roof fall where a pillar was being worked out in the Pumpquart anthracite seam at Glynhebog Colliery slant, Pontyberem, released gas that the air current carried onto the naked lights of men waiting nearby; three were badly burnt and two died. |
28 May 1900 | Explosion | Carmarthenshire | 2 |
| Cwm Capel Colliery inrush, 1907 At 7.45 on the morning of Saturday 7 December 1907 a heading in Jones's slant at Cwm Capel Colliery, Burry Port, broke into flooded old workings through a barrier of only six inches of coal; a boy of fifteen was drowned and a young collier died of his injuries eleven days later. |
7 December 1907 | Flooding / Inundation | Carmarthenshire | 2 |
| New Lodge Colliery roof fall, 1931 On the morning of Thursday 19 November 1931 a heavy fall of roof at a parting in New Lodge Colliery, Burry Port, buried and killed two repairers, William Jones and Joseph Lewis. |
19 November 1931 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Carmarthenshire | 2 |
| Crown Colliery sinking accident, 1911 On 31 July 1911 the rope holding a 30-hundredweight sinking pump above the sinkers in the new shaft at Crown Colliery, Pwll, near Llanelli, snapped at its clamp, and the pump fell on the men walling the shaft below, killing four. |
31 July 1911 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Carmarthenshire | 4 |
| Guerets Colliery steam scalding, 1895 On the afternoon of Saturday 19 October 1895 two colliers left behind in Guerets' Graigola Colliery at Clydach tried to make their own way out through the upcast airway and were scalded to death by steam, with no engineman at his post to wind them. |
19 October 1895 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Swansea | 2 |
| Birchgrove Colliery trench collapse, 1923 On 21 October 1923 the sides of a trench being dug at the surface of Birchgrove Colliery, near Swansea, collapsed on three men, burying two colliers, Thomas Rees and Richard Warwick, who were dead when recovered. |
21 October 1923 | Other | Swansea | 2 |
| Birchgrove Colliery sinking accident, 1896 On the evening of Wednesday 20 May 1896 a stone of about a ton and a half fell from the unwalled side of the Brothers Pit at Birchgrove, near Swansea, while it was being deepened to the Four-Feet seam, killing two sinkers outright and fatally injuring a third. |
20 May 1896 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Swansea | 3 |
| Birchgrove Colliery inrush, 1889 Around midnight on 15-16 April 1889 a stall in the Graigola seam at Birchgrove Colliery, near Swansea, was driven to within three feet of the flooded old Cwmdu workings; the coal gave way and the water drowned four men and six horses. |
16 April 1889 | Flooding / Inundation | Swansea | 4 |
| Shildon Colliery shaft accident, 1902 On 7 May 1902 two shaftsmen at Shildon Colliery, County Durham, were fixing ladders in the upcast shaft when the engineman lowering them lost control of the engine and ran the kibble hard on to the bottom; both men died of their injuries. |
7 May 1902 | Winding / Shaft Accident | County Durham | 2 |
| Black Vein Colliery fall of coal, 1871 On the morning of Friday 26 May 1871 a fall of coal buried the collier John Wilkins in his stall at the Black Vein Pit, Risca, and a second fall killed John Phillips, one of the two colliers who had run to dig him out. |
26 May 1871 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Caerphilly | 2 |
| Hook Colliery boat disaster, 1850 On the evening of Wednesday 7 August 1850 four men and a boy from Hook Colliery, Pembrokeshire, were drowned off Picton Point when their small boat filled in a gale as they returned from loading timber for the colliery. |
7 August 1850 | Other | Pembrokeshire | 5 |
| Nantmelyn Colliery roof fall, 1895 A fall of roof at Nantmelyn Colliery, Cwmdare, on Tuesday 12 November 1895 killed the collier John Dean outright and so badly injured his workmate William Williams that he died the same day. |
12 November 1895 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Bargoed Colliery roof fall, 1903 A heavy fall of roof at the Powell Duffryn Company's Bargoed New Pits on the morning of Thursday 3 December 1903 killed one collier outright and fatally injured his partner, John Thomas, nineteen, captain of the Bargoed Lilies football team. |
3 December 1903 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Caerphilly | 2 |
| Lluest Colliery coal outburst, 1893 On the morning of Friday 22 September 1893 a sudden outburst of coal, known locally as a 'pounce', killed a father and son, Rhys and William Davies, in a heading at Lluest Colliery in the Garw valley. |
22 September 1893 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Bridgend | 2 |
| Wernffraith Colliery explosion, 1770 On 12 June 1770, twelve years after the first disaster there, an explosion caused by naked lights at Wernffraith Colliery, Neath Abbey, killed seventeen miners; the Cadoxton register says they were 'all burnt to death in the coal pits'. |
1770 | Explosion | Neath Port Talbot | 17 |
| Wernffraith Colliery explosion, 1758 On Wednesday 24 May 1758 an explosion of firedamp at Wernffraith Colliery, on the hillside behind Court Herbert at Neath Abbey, killed its owner and manager William Shepley and many of his men; seventeen were buried together at Cadoxton that Saturday. |
1758 | Explosion | Neath Port Talbot | 10 |
| South Derwent Colliery screens accident, 1888 On 11 August 1888 two empty waggons run in too fast under the screens at South Derwent Colliery, near Annfield Plain, struck the waggons being loaded there and threw two screeners down among the wheels, killing both. |
1888 | Haulage / Transport | County Durham | 2 |
| North Seaton Colliery explosion, 1905 On the night of Sunday 26 November 1905 firedamp exploded in the Yard seam at North Seaton Colliery, Northumberland, killing the stoneman William Jasper Littlehale and the timberer David Joseph Robinson and injuring the chargeman John Love. |
26 November 1905 | Explosion | Northumberland | 2 |
| Seaforth Colliery double fatality, 1948 Two miners, Edward Harris and Charles McAnespie, both 26, were killed at the National Coal Board's Seaforth Colliery, New Cumnock, Ayrshire, on 9 January 1948, a year after nationalisation. |
9 January 1948 | Other | East Ayrshire | 2 |
| Rhydding Colliery roof fall, 1876 Three men clearing an earlier fall in Evans and Bevan's Rhydding drift near Neath were killed by a fall of roof on 11 January 1876. |
1876 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Neath Port Talbot | 3 |
| Ynyshir House Colliery explosion, 1857 An explosion of gas at the Ynyshir colliery in the Rhondda Fach on 18 March 1857 killed four miners: Morgan Butler, David Howells, John Parry and William Williams. |
18 March 1857 | Explosion | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 4 |
| Lady Windsor Colliery roof fall, 1918 Two timbermen securing a stall face in Lady Windsor Colliery's nine-feet seam were buried by a fall of roof in March 1918, and a second fall ended the rescue. |
March 1918 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Dunraven Colliery cage collision, 1918 Two cages collided in the Tydraw Colliery shaft at Treherbert on 10 March 1918, throwing a fireman and an ostler some 150 yards to the bottom. |
10 March 1918 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Dyffryn Main Colliery roof fall, 1919 A collier and his son were killed together by a fall of roof in the Graigola seam at the Main (Bryncoch) Colliery near Neath on 8 April 1919. |
8 April 1919 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Neath Port Talbot | 2 |
| Cwmgwrach Colliery suffocation, 1919 A night fireman and a repairer were suffocated in fenced-off gassy workings at the Empire Colliery, Cwmgwrach, on 28 October 1919. |
28 October 1919 | Gas / Asphyxiation | Neath Port Talbot | 2 |
| Cribbwr Fawr Colliery roof fall, 1918 A rider and his boy assistant were buried by a heavy fall of roof while riding a journey at Cribbwr Fawr Colliery, Pyle, on 18 June 1918. |
18 June 1918 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Bridgend | 2 |
| Abercrave Colliery roof fall, 1917 Six or seven tons of roof fell on three men waiting for a tram at Abercrave Colliery on 30 August 1917, killing two cousins, one aged 15. |
30 August 1917 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Powys | 2 |
| Gurnos Colliery runaway journey, 1916 A snapped coupling sent about six trams back down an incline at Gurnos Colliery, Ystradgynlais, on 24 November 1916, killing two men at a double parting. |
24 November 1916 | Haulage / Transport | Powys | 2 |
| Hook Colliery inrush, 1916 Colliers at Hook, Pembrokeshire, cut into flooded old workings on 22 September 1916; two men were drowned and an inquest jury blamed the manager's negligence. |
22 September 1916 | Flooding / Inundation | Pembrokeshire | 2 |
| Bedlinog Colliery roof fall, 1916 Two Dowlais repairers were buried under about 30 tons of roof while strengthening timber on a double parting in Bedlinog's No. 1 pit on 17 March 1916. |
17 March 1916 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Merthyr Tydfil | 2 |
| Lletty Shenkin Colliery roof fall, 1915 A fall of roof at Lletty Shenkin Colliery, Cwmbach, on 8 June 1915 buried two young colliers; one was heard alive for hours before a second fall ended the rescue. |
8 June 1915 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Lewis Merthyr Colliery roof fall, 1909 Two brothers, James and George Morgan, were killed by a fall of roof at the Lewis Merthyr Collieries' Trefor pit on 26 April 1909 as they left work. |
26 April 1909 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Aberpergwm Colliery runaway tram, 1901 Two riders were killed at Aberpergwm Colliery, Glynneath, on 13 August 1901 when an empty tram ran into the timber trolley they were riding. |
13 August 1901 | Haulage / Transport | Neath Port Talbot | 2 |
| Glyntillery Colliery shot-firing accident, 1914 A frozen gelignite charge exploded in its hole as it was being rammed at Glyntillery Colliery on 18 March 1914, killing the shotfirer and a repairer and badly injuring two more men. |
18 March 1914 | Explosion | Torfaen | 2 |
| Rhymney Merthyr Colliery roof fall, 1907 Four men clearing a fall in the Rhas Las seam at Pontlottyn in February 1907 were buried by a second fall; two were dug out alive after nearly three hours and two were dead. |
February 1907 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Caerphilly | 2 |
| Deep Navigation Colliery roof fall, 1914 A fall of roof 28 feet long on a double parting at Deep Navigation Colliery, Treharris, on 25 June 1914 killed one man outright and fatally injured another. |
25 June 1914 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Merthyr Tydfil | 2 |
| Bedwas Navigation Colliery shaft accident, 1911 Two sinkers were thrown from the bowk and fell to their deaths in the North Pit sinking at Bedwas on 15 July 1911, after improper signalling took the bowk past its landing. |
15 July 1911 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Caerphilly | 2 |
| Ammanford Colliery roof fall, 1910 Two men were killed three days before Christmas 1910 when three sets of double timber collapsed on a road under repair at Ammanford Colliery. |
22 December 1910 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Carmarthenshire | 2 |
| Cwmaman Colliery haulage accident, 1910 Two boys hurrying to the pit bottom at the end of their shift at Cwmaman Colliery were overtaken and killed by a journey of drams on 1 October 1910. |
1 October 1910 | Haulage / Transport | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Emlyn Colliery runaway journey, 1909 Two repairers walking out of Emlyn Colliery, Penygroes, at the end of the shift on 28 June 1909 were killed when a badly coupled tram and timber carriage ran wild down the slant. |
28 June 1909 | Haulage / Transport | Carmarthenshire | 2 |
| Merthyr Vale Colliery roof fall, 1902 A ripper and his assistant at Merthyr Vale Colliery were killed in January 1902 when the clod they were barring down fell on them before they could move. |
January 1902 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Fochriw Colliery runaway journey, 1901 Nine trams broke loose from a journey on a Fochriw Colliery drift on 12 January 1901 and ran back into the men behind, killing two men and three horses. |
12 January 1901 | Haulage / Transport | Caerphilly | 2 |
| Fochriw Colliery runaway trams, 1900 Two workers on their way out of Fochriw Colliery's No. 2 pit were killed on 5 April 1900 when trams ran away on a double parting after a hitching plate broke. |
5 April 1900 | Haulage / Transport | Caerphilly | 2 |
| Mynydd Maen Colliery roof fall, 1930 Two brothers were killed by a 40 to 50 ton fall of roof at Mynydd Maen Colliery on 3 December 1930, after one of them pushed a 14-year-old boy clear. |
3 December 1930 | Collapse / Roof Fall | Torfaen | 2 |
| Tylecoch Colliery shaft accident, 1857 Three masons walling the new Tylecoch shaft at Treorchy were killed in February 1857 when a load of bricks fell on them from the pit top. |
February 1857 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 3 |
| Bute Colliery shaft accident, 1872 A father and son coming up the Bute Colliery shaft at Treherbert in January 1872 were killed when a full tram ran into the shaft and broke their cage loose. |
January 1872 | Winding / Shaft Accident | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 2 |
| Bute Colliery explosion, 1865 An explosion of firedamp at the Bute Merthyr Colliery, Treherbert, the Rhondda's first steam-coal pit, killed four colliers on 17 February 1865. |
17 February 1865 | Explosion | Rhondda Cynon Taf | 4 |