MineArchiveTareni Colliery Flood, 1909
| Date | 2 November 1909 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Tarenni Colliery |
| Region | Neath Port Talbot |
| Type | Flooding / Inundation |
| Fatalities | 5 (Five men are named in the Northern Mine Research Society's account: Ben Griffiths, Evan Thomas, David Edward Rees, Evan Harris and Isaac Rees.) |
| Context | During active mining |
| Status | Researched |
Five miners drowned at Tareni Colliery when a working district broke into the adjoining, long-abandoned and waterlogged workings of the Ynysgeinon Pit.
Cause
A working district holed into the adjoining, long-abandoned and flooded workings of the Ynysgeinon Pit, releasing floodwater into the active workings with no warning.
What happened
On 1 November 1909, with around 100 men working underground, miners working a district of Tareni Colliery holed into old, waterlogged workings -- for which no records existed -- of the neighbouring, long-abandoned Ynysgeinon Pit. A torrent of water came rushing down the main drift, overwhelming everything in its path; rescuers who tried to reach the trapped men could make no progress against a shoulder-high surge. Four men -- Ben Griffiths (18), David Edward Rees (18), Isaac Rees (38) and Evan Thomas (19) -- drowned immediately, and a fifth, the boy Evan Harris, was reported missing for two days before being presumed dead. A further four men -- David T. Davies, Evan Evans, Jenkin Jenkins and Evan Roderick -- were injured.
Investigation & inquiry
No detail on a formal inquiry or inquest into this incident has yet been located in the sources checked.
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- The five men killed were Ben Griffiths (18), David Edward Rees (18), Isaac Rees (38) and Evan Thomas (19), all drowned immediately, and Evan Harris, a boy reported missing for two days before being presumed dead; a further four men -- David T. Davies, Evan Evans, Jenkin Jenkins and Evan Roderick -- were injured. 1,2
- Rescuers tried to reach the trapped men but could make no progress against a shoulder-high surge of water; the inrush came from long-abandoned workings for which no records existed, into which the miners had inadvertently holed. 2
Sources
- (secondary) Tareni Colliery — Northern Mine Research Society
- (secondary) Tarnei Colliery Inrush, Pontardawe, 1909 — Northern Mine Research Society (citing Fieldhouse & Dunn, 'And they worked us to death', Vol. 2)
Record created: 2 September 2026 · Last researched: 2 September 2026