MineArchiveKillan Colliery inundation, 1924
On the evening of 27 November 1924 water burst from abandoned workings into the Penlan district of Killan Colliery, near Dunvant on the western edge of Swansea, with sixty-seven people underground. Five were killed, the last two bodies not recovered until New Year's Day 1925.
| Date | 27 November 1924 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Killan Colliery |
| Region | Swansea |
| Type | Flooding / Inundation |
| Fatalities | 5 (Five. The Inspector of Mines' report names James Goulding, 21, a rider; Charles Evans, 39, a collier; Wilfrid John, 15, a trammer's helper; and Archie Davies, 28, and Philip Godbeer, 32, colliers. The memorial at Dunvant and the Welsh Coal Mines account agree with each other and differ from him on three of the five: Wilfred John 17, Willie Goulding 22, Charles Evans 30, Archie Davis 28, Phil Godbeer 32. A rescuer, fireman Thomas William of the Elms Colliery, was killed on the railway walking home in the dark and is not in the five.) |
| Context | During active mining |
Cause
Water broke from the old No. 4 West Level into the Penlan workings at about half past five in the evening. The Inspector found the colliery plan inaccurate, no boring done ahead of the workings, and the manager labouring under a false sense of security.
What happened
Sixty-seven people were below when the inrush came. Eleven were got out from behind obstructions within hours. James Goulding, a rider of twenty-one, was found alive but held fast under the haulage rope and died before he could be freed, about four hours after the water broke in; the Inspector wrote that he would probably have been saved had a pumpsman not gone about telling people he was dead. Charles Evans's body was found fifty-one hours later, while five more people were brought out alive that night and the next day. Wilfrid John, fifteen, was not found until 16 December, and Archie Davies and Philip Godbeer not until New Year's Day 1925, in the return airway under fine silt. The jury found the deaths accidental but could not agree on where responsibility lay. The Inspector's report and the Dunvant memorial differ on the ages of three of the five men, and on Goulding's forename (James or Willie); the toll of five is not in doubt. A rescuer, fireman Thomas William of the nearby Elms Colliery, was killed walking home in the dark along the railway and is counted apart from the five.
Memorials & commemoration
Dunvant Community Council installed a memorial in Dunvant car park in 1996. Its text had become illegible, and Swansea Council's Gower National Landscape team restored it with new bilingual signage in time for the centenary, funded by the Welsh Government's Sustainable Landscapes, Sustainable Places fund. Ebeneser Chapel at Dunvant held a commemorative service with the Dunvant Male Choir on 24 November 2024.
Sources
- (primary) Inundation of water at Killan Colliery, 27 November 1924 — 1924 Mines Inspectors Report, Swansea Division (No. 7), by W. J. Charlton, H.M. Inspector of Mines — Durham Mining Museum
- (secondary) Restored memorial commemorates 100th anniversary of mine disaster — City and County of Swansea
Record created: 10 September 2026 · Last researched: 22 September 2026