Bothwell Castle Colliery explosion, 1908

On 11 May 1908 an explosion of firedamp killed two men at Bothwell Castle Colliery, near Uddingston, ignited by a lamp whose gauze had been broken.

Cause

Firedamp ignited by a defective lamp gauze, carried into the mine after its top had been broken in the lamp-room; the gas had gathered where an airway was closed by a fall.

What happened

George McKay, aged 30, a repairer, and John Tonner, aged 23, a fireman, were killed at three in the morning by the explosion. A fireman had taken in a lamp whose gauze another had broken and left on a shelf, and the gas had accumulated behind a fall that closed an airway.

Sources

1. (secondary) Durham Mining Museum - Bothwell Castle Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) John Tonner, Bothwell Castle Colliery, 11 May 1908 — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 18 September 2026 · Last researched: 22 September 2026