Tower Colliery roof fall, 1913

A heavy fall of roof in the new Coronation Drift at Tower Colliery, Hirwaun, on 16 June 1913 killed three hard heading men the day before the drift was to send out its first coal.

Cause

A large stone fell from the roof of the new drift while the men were setting timber.

What happened

The Coronation Drift was being driven high on the mountain above Tower Colliery's other levels at Hirwaun, by shifts of five men. A few days earlier they had reached the coal, and the first coal was due to go down the mountain the next day. At about half past six on the evening of Monday 16 June 1913, as they were setting timbers, a heavy fall buried three of them. John Rosser escaped unhurt and ran with the haulier, Dave Roberts, to the engine room to telephone for help.

The colliery hooter brought crowds to the mouth of the level, and young men went in their evening clothes to help clear the debris. John Evans, 45, was found first but died soon afterwards; Waldo Evans, 44, was carried out to hospital; William John Llewellyn, 25, lay under a stone ten feet long and four feet thick and was found only with great difficulty. All three were hard heading men. The collieries closed for the funeral.

Rescue & recovery

The alarm was raised by telephone and hooter; rescuers, some in their evening clothes, dug the three men out.

Recorded claims

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

• Three hard heading men were killed by a fall of roof at Tower Colliery on 16 June 1913. ^1,2
• The fall was in the new Coronation Drift, which had reached the coal a few days before. ¹
• The men were erecting timbers when a stone about ten feet long, eight and a half feet wide and four feet thick fell. ¹

Related terminology

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

• Coal (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “…hard heading men the day before the drift was to send out its first coal.”
• Drift (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “A heavy fall of roof in the new Coronation Drift at Tower Colliery, Hirwaun, on 16 June 1913 killed three hard…”
• Haulier (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…buried three of them. John Rosser escaped unhurt and ran with the haulier, Dave Roberts, to the engine room to telephone for help. The…”
• Level (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the narrative: “…was being driven high on the mountain above Tower Colliery's other levels at Hirwaun, by shifts of five men. A few days earlier they had…”
• Roof Fall (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s summary: “A heavy fall of roof in the new Coronation Drift at Tower Colliery, Hirwaun, on 16 June…”

Sources

1. (secondary) Welsh coal mining fatalities, 1913 — Welsh Coal Mines
2. (secondary) Tower Colliery — Northern Mine Research Society

Record created: 7 October 2026 · Last researched: 7 October 2026