Callands Pit boiler explosion, 1878

At about one o'clock on Tuesday 5 March 1878 one of the four boilers working the pumping engine at Callands Pit, Landore, burst. The fireman David Jones and a twelve-year-old boy, Daniel Fisher, were killed, and the engineer Thomas Griffiths, badly scalded as he ran into the boiler house, died that night.

Cause

A tube in the boiler collapsed for want of water.

What happened

Fisher had come into the boiler house and been sent by the fireman to fetch him a drink of water; the explosion came just as he got back. Griffiths ran into the boiler house when he heard it, was badly scalded and escaped through a window, and died at his home that evening. The 37-foot boiler stayed in its seating and the surrounding masonry was hardly disturbed, but a large part of the roof was blown off.

Investigation & inquiry

The coroner, Edward Strick, opened the inquest with a jury of fourteen, and Mr Wales, the inspector of mines, examined the boiler house. At the adjourned inquest, with Vivians' agent Mr Naysmith present, evidence showed no defect in the boiler or tube; the jury found the explosion was caused by the collapse of a tube from want of water and was accidental.

Recorded claims

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

• About one o'clock on Tuesday 5 March 1878 a boiler burst at Callands (Collard's) Pit, Landore, belonging to Vivian and Sons, killing the fireman David Jones and a boy, Daniel Fisher; the engineer, Thomas Griffiths, died of his scalds that night. ^1,2,3
• The boiler house held four boilers working the pumping engine that kept the pit clear of water; the one that burst was 37 feet long. ^1,2,3
• The adjourned inquest found that the explosion came from the collapse of a tube for want of water, and returned a verdict of accidental death. ⁴
• Apart from part of the roof blown away and the burst boiler itself, little damage was done, and pumping went on with the other three boilers. ^1,3

Related terminology

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

• Boiler House (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…and the engineer Thomas Griffiths, badly scalded as he ran into the boiler house, died that night.”
• Fireman (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…working the pumping engine at Callands Pit, Landore, burst. The fireman David Jones and a twelve-year-old boy, Daniel Fisher, were killed,…”
• HM Chief Inspector of Mines (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s investigation: “…opened the inquest with a jury of fourteen, and Mr Wales, the inspector of mines, examined the boiler house. At the adjourned inquest, with Vivians'…”
• Pumping Engine (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s summary: “…o'clock on Tuesday 5 March 1878 one of the four boilers working the pumping engine at Callands Pit, Landore, burst. The fireman David Jones and a…”

Sources

1. (secondary) Welsh Coal Mines: fatalities, 1878 — Welsh Coal Mines
2. (primary) South Wales Daily News, 6 March 1878: Boiler explosion at Landore: two youths killed — South Wales Daily News (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
3. (primary) The Western Mail, 7 March 1878: The boiler explosion at Landore: death of the engineer — The Western Mail (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
4. (primary) The Cardiff Times, 16 March 1878: The fatal boiler explosion at Landore (adjourned inquest) — The Cardiff Times (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)

Record created: 19 October 2026 · Last researched: 20 October 2026