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.

Cause

A sudden fall of six to seven tons of roof on a parting in the nine-foot seam.

What happened

At about 2.30 on the morning of Thursday 30 August 1917, during the night shift at Abercrave Colliery, three men whose stalls had just been cleared by a haulier were waiting on a parting in the nine-foot seam for an empty tram. Six or seven tons of roof fell without warning and buried them. The cousins John T. Jones, 35, and Job Evans, 15, were found dead, and John Griffith Jones of Onllwyn was injured. The night overman told the inquest he had examined the spot about five minutes earlier and found it safe, and that the section had been retimbered under his supervision a week before. The jury returned accidental death. More than a thousand people attended the cousins' funeral at Nantyffin.

Recorded claims

Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.

• At about 2.30 a.m. on 30 August 1917, on the night shift, a fall of roof at Abercrave Colliery killed two cousins, John T. Jones, 35, and Job Evans, 15. ^1,2,3
• Three men were waiting on a parting in the nine-foot seam for an empty tram when six or seven tons of roof fell without warning. ^1,2,3
• The third man, John Griffith Jones of Onllwyn, was injured. ^1,2,3
• The overman said he had examined the place five minutes before and found it safe, and that the section had been retimbered a week earlier; the jury returned accidental death. ³
• More than a thousand people attended the cousins' funeral at Nantyffin. ¹

Related terminology

Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.

• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…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.”
• Haulier (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…Colliery, three men whose stalls had just been cleared by a haulier were waiting on a parting in the nine-foot seam for an empty tram.…”
• Overman (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…dead, and John Griffith Jones of Onllwyn was injured. The night overman told the inquest he had examined the spot about five minutes earlier…”
• Stall (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…1917, during the night shift at Abercrave Colliery, three men whose stalls had just been cleared by a haulier were waiting on a parting in the…”
• Tub (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “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…”

Sources

1. (secondary) 1917 (Welsh mining fatalities by date) — Welsh Coal Mines
2. (primary) Abercrave Colliery fatality: two men killed and one injured (Llais Llafur, 1 September 1917) — Welsh Newspapers (National Library of Wales)
3. (primary) Abercrave Colliery fatality: crushed by 7 ton fall (Llais Llafur, 8 September 1917) — Welsh Newspapers (National Library of Wales)

Record created: 9 October 2026 · Last researched: 9 October 2026