MineArchiveTylorstown No.8 Pit roof fall, 1913
At about 2 a.m. on 8 April 1913 a massive fall at a ripping lip in No. 8 Pit, Tylorstown, where double timbers were being set after an earlier fall, buried five men. Four died, two of them brothers; the rescue took about eleven hours through further falls, and one man survived with broken legs.
| Date | 8 April 1913 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Tylorstown Colliery |
| Region | Rhondda Cynon Taf |
| Type | Collapse / Roof Fall |
| Fatalities | 4 (4 dead, all named; 1 seriously injured.) |
| Injuries | 1 |
| Context | During active mining |
Cause
A large fall of roof at the ripping lip where repairs followed a fall the week before.
Contributing factors
Unknown.
What happened
The Davies brothers were working a stall, and the repairers were being helped by the collier Llewellyn Thomas at the ripping lip, where double timbers were being set after a fall a week earlier. The roof came down over a length of about 15 feet and 19 feet high.
Rescue & recovery
Rescuers led by Mr Griffiths, who had played a big part after the 1896 explosion at the pit, worked about eleven hours through several further falls. Evans, Ashton and James Davies were found alive, pinned upright by debris; only Thomas Ashton survived.
Investigation & inquiry
Unknown.
Legal & regulatory aftermath
Unknown.
Changes to practice & legislation
Unknown.
Memorials & commemoration
Unknown.
People
4 of the 4 who died are named in the archive; the rest are not named in the sources read for this record.
- Thomas Ashton · survivor, 1913 — Assistant repairer; survived with broken legs and internal injuries.
- James Davies (d. 1913) · victim, 1913 — Collier, 32, of Church Street, Tylorstown; found alive but died.
- Lewis Davies (d. 1913) · victim, 1913 — Collier, 29, his brother, of Penrhys.
- John Evans (d. 1913) · victim, 1913 — Repairer, 27 or 28, of Pontygwaith; found alive but died.
- Llewellyn Thomas (d. 1913) · victim, 1913 — Collier, 32 or 33, of Ynyshir.
What's uncertain
Points where sources disagree or the record could not be settled; both accounts are kept. All open questions in the archive.
- A massive fall of around 500 tons of stone. (disputed) 1
- A roof fall buried five men under 150 tons of stone. (disputed) 2
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- A massive fall of around 500 tons of stone. (disputed) 1
- A roof fall buried five men under 150 tons of stone. (disputed) 2
- Two were killed instantly and two died of their injuries later. 2
- After about 11 hours and several further falls rescuers retrieved the men; Thomas Ashton was the only survivor. 1
Related terminology
Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.
- Ripping (contextual relationship)
Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “At about 2 a.m. on 8 April 1913 a massive fall at a ripping lip in No. 8 Pit, Tylorstown, where double timbers were being set after…” - Roof Fall (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s cause: “A large fall of roof at the ripping lip where repairs followed a fall the week before.” - Stall (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s narrative: “The Davies brothers were working a stall, and the repairers were being helped by the collier Llewellyn Thomas…”
Sources
- (secondary) Tylorstown Colliery — welshcoalmines.co.uk
- (secondary) Ferndale Collieries — Northern Mine Research Society
Record created: 16 September 2026 · Last researched: 21 September 2026