Mountain Colliery explosion, 1910

A charge that had misfired in an earlier volley went off in the drift at Mountain Colliery, Gorseinon, on the morning of 31 May 1910, killing two men filling a tram and injuring four.

Cause

A misfired charge left from volley firing in the drift exploded during the next shift.

What happened

Between eight and nine on the morning of Tuesday 31 May 1910 an explosion in the drift of Mountain Colliery, Gorseinon, owned by the Swansea Navigation Collieries Company, killed Edward Alfred Moore, 26, and Samuel Morse, 22, who were filling a tram, and injured four more: Joseph Bitchener, critically, Ivor Rees, Ioan Rees, and the foreman Frank Priddy. No shots had been fired on that shift. About fifty men were in the pit, and relatives ran to the colliery before word came that the rest were safe. Moore had lately moved from Aberdare and his wife and child were bringing their furniture by train that very day.

At the adjourned inquest the drift's practice came under question: it was the custom to charge fifteen holes and fire them four at a time. The charge-man of the previous shift said he had satisfied himself all his holes had fired; the under-manager thought a shot might have blown out of an unfired hole, or a misfired cartridge been thrown among the debris in a volley and exploded later. The inspector of mines, Dr Atkinson, pressed witnesses on the danger of charging many holes and firing them in volleys. The jury found that the deaths were probably caused by a misfire.

Investigation & inquiry

Adjourned inquest at Gorseinon attended by Dr Atkinson and Dyar Lewis of the mines inspectorate; verdict that the explosion was probably caused by a misfire. The inspector questioned the practice of charging fifteen holes and firing them in volleys.

Recorded claims

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

• On 31 May 1910 an explosion at Mountain Colliery, Gorseinon, killed two men and injured four. ^1,2,3
• The dead were Edward Alfred Moore, 26, and Samuel Morse, 22. ^1,3,4
• The explosion was thought to be a misfired shot; the jury found a probable misfire. ^1,4
• It was the custom in the drift to charge fifteen holes and fire four at a time. ⁴
• The colliery was owned by the Swansea Navigation Collieries Company. ⁴

Related terminology

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

• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “…had misfired in an earlier volley went off in the drift at Mountain Colliery, Gorseinon, on the morning of 31 May 1910, killing two men filling a…”
• Drift (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “A charge that had misfired in an earlier volley went off in the drift at Mountain Colliery, Gorseinon, on the morning of 31 May 1910,…”
• HM Chief Inspector of Mines (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the narrative: “…been thrown among the debris in a volley and exploded later. The inspector of mines, Dr Atkinson, pressed witnesses on the danger of charging many holes…”
• Tub (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…Gorseinon, on the morning of 31 May 1910, killing two men filling a tram and injuring four.”
• Undermanager (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…shift said he had satisfied himself all his holes had fired; the under-manager thought a shot might have blown out of an unfired hole, or a…”

Sources

1. (secondary) Mountain Colliery, Gorseinon — Welsh Coal Mines
2. (primary) Weekly Mail, 4 June 1910: Serious colliery mishap in West Wales: Mountain Colliery, Gorseinon — Weekly Mail (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
3. (primary) The Aberdare Leader, 4 June 1910: The Gorseinon explosion: Aberdare man killed — The Aberdare Leader (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
4. (primary) The South Wales Daily Post, 24 June 1910: Gorseinon explosion: injured men's evidence at inquest — The South Wales Daily Post (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)

Record created: 18 October 2026 · Last researched: 18 October 2026