Broadoak Colliery explosion, 1897

An explosion at Broadoak Colliery, Loughor, killed five men on the morning of 5 January 1897, after the night-shift fireman's own safety lamp was found to have been opened; a jury found no culpable negligence.

Cause

The Inspector of Mines was convinced, from careful examination of the workings, that the explosion originated in the No.2 slope and was caused by the fireman, David Lewis, opening his own locked safety lamp; the presence of large amounts of coal dust in the dry, dusty workings intensified the blast.

What happened

Broadoak Colliery was the property of Samuel Thomas and employed 70 to 80 men, working the Five Feet bituminous seam by the pillar and stall method; ventilation was by a 20-foot Waddle fan and the mine was lit by locked safety lamps. A night shift went to work on the evening of 4 January 1897; three or four of the shift ascended between 4 and 5am the next morning, leaving seven men below — six repairers and the fireman in charge. At 5am, just as the day fireman was about to descend, the explosion occurred. Five of the seven men below were killed; two escaped unhurt. The body of the fireman, David Lewis, was found with the bonneted gauze of his Clanny lamp lying about 20 yards up the road; the rest of the lamp was found nearby the following Friday. Inspection afterwards found heavy roof falls from the downcast shaft to the foot of the incline, all the main doors blown away, and thick deposits of coked coal dust on the props, sides and coal face throughout the workings.

Investigation & inquiry

The safety lamps of the four surviving workmen were found locked; from a careful examination of the workings, the Mines Inspector concluded the explosion had originated in the No.2 slope and was caused by the fireman opening his own lamp, intensified by the quantity of coal dust present. The inquest jury returned a verdict that the cause was the opening of David Lewis's lamp, 'but not amounting to culpable negligence on his part'.

Memorials & commemoration

No memorial has been found for this disaster.

Recorded claims

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

• Welsh Coal Mines gives Morgan Sanders's age as 23; NMRS gives 32. The other four names and ages, and the cause, agree between the two accounts. (disputed) ^1,2

Related terminology

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

• Downcast Shaft and Upcast Shaft (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…Friday. Inspection afterwards found heavy roof falls from the downcast shaft to the foot of the incline, all the main doors blown away, and thick…”
• Fireman (contextual relationship)
  Named 6 times in this record, first in the summary: “…five men on the morning of 5 January 1897, after the night-shift fireman's own safety lamp was found to have been opened; a jury found no…”
• Room and Pillar (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…employed 70 to 80 men, working the Five Feet bituminous seam by the pillar and stall method; ventilation was by a 20-foot Waddle fan and the mine was lit…”
• Safety Lamp (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…the morning of 5 January 1897, after the night-shift fireman's own safety lamp was found to have been opened; a jury found no culpable negligence.”
• Waddle Fan (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…seam by the pillar and stall method; ventilation was by a 20-foot Waddle fan and the mine was lit by locked safety lamps. A night shift went to…”

Sources

1. (secondary) Broad Oak (Welsh Coal Mines) — Welsh Coal Mines
2. (secondary) Broadoak Colliery Explosion - Loughor - 1897 — Northern Mine Research Society

Record created: 14 September 2026 · Last researched: 14 September 2026