1923 Bellbird Mining Disaster: Difference between revisions
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== Cause == |
== Cause == |
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The explosion was caused by methane gas build up which was caused by dust being constantly pushed and reacting to the air.<ref name=":0" /> The explosions were caused by the distillation of coal gas within overheated coals heaps which ignited the gas which cause the fire and the explosion would spread the fire.<ref name=":2" /> There evidence of heating within heaps of fallen coal which caused the [[spontaneous combustion]].<ref name=":0" /> |
The explosion was caused by methane gas build up which was caused by dust being constantly pushed and reacting to the air.<ref name=":0" /> The explosions were caused by the distillation of coal gas within overheated coals heaps which ignited the gas which cause the fire and the explosion would spread the fire.<ref name=":2" /> There evidence of heating within heaps of fallen coal which caused the [[spontaneous combustion]].<ref name=":0" /> . The use of naked lights through the mine was considered to be cause of the fire<ref name=":5">{{Cite book|last=Geale|first=Rhonda|title=The First Rescue Station: the development of a mine rescue organization on the northern district coalfield|publisher=|year=1990|isbn=|location=|pages=}}</ref> . There have been three probable fires of the fire ignition of [[firedamp]] or other inflammable gas to contract with naked flame , ignition of coal dust by flame due to overcharged shot or ignition of inflammable gases produced and subsequently ignited by active mine fires<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Watson|first=James Thomas|date=1924|title=Explosions and fires in mines|url=http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=862012444276331;res=IELENG|journal=Transactions of the Institution of Engineers, Australia|language=EN|volume=5|pages=25}}</ref>. |
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== Deaths == |
== Deaths == |
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== Aftermath == |
== Aftermath == |
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Saw the destruction of much of the mining equipment including saw machinery and coal skips.<ref name=":0" /> After three |
Saw the destruction of much of the mining equipment including saw machinery and coal skips.<ref name=":0" /> After three weeks No.2 Working was reopened due to the lack of damage.<ref name=":1" /> |
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The disaster caused a debate about the flow of consistent ventilation in mines.<ref name=":0" /> Which saw the implementation of stone dusting to reduce the dangers of coal dust.<ref name=":0" /> It created a greater public awareness of mining safety,the need for emergency equipment and trained emergency and rescue officers.<ref name=":4" /> |
The disaster caused a debate about the flow of consistent ventilation in mines.<ref name=":0" /> Which saw the implementation of stone dusting to reduce the dangers of coal dust.<ref name=":0" /> It created a greater public awareness of mining safety,the need for emergency equipment and trained emergency and rescue officers.<ref name=":4" /> After the disaster all sources of light were replaced with safety lamps<ref name=":5" />. |
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On the 3rd September a funeral was held in Cessnock which thousands attended.<ref name=":1" /> Hundred of miners completed a "marched in honour of their dead comrades".<ref name=":0" /> A monument was placed in memorial park near the site of the Bellbird Colliery listing the names of 21 men who lost their lives.<ref name=":3" /> Bellbird Tidy Town and Austar completed a restoration of the disaster site<ref>{{Cite web|last=Robson|first=Lucie|date=2013-11-13|title=Keeping Bellbird’s history alive|url=https://www.cessnockadvertiser.com.au/story/1905043/keeping-bellbirds-history-alive/|access-date=2020-10-27|website=The Advertiser - Cessnock|language=en}}</ref> |
On the 3rd September a funeral was held in Cessnock which thousands attended.<ref name=":1" /> Hundred of miners completed a "marched in honour of their dead comrades".<ref name=":0" /> A monument was placed in memorial park near the site of the Bellbird Colliery listing the names of 21 men who lost their lives.<ref name=":3" /> Bellbird Tidy Town and Austar completed a restoration of the disaster site<ref>{{Cite web|last=Robson|first=Lucie|date=2013-11-13|title=Keeping Bellbird’s history alive|url=https://www.cessnockadvertiser.com.au/story/1905043/keeping-bellbirds-history-alive/|access-date=2020-10-27|website=The Advertiser - Cessnock|language=en}}</ref>. The Miners Federation started a campaign to increase regulations as they believed the accident was preventable<ref name=":5" />. |
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In 1924 a group of trained volunteer rescue teams using Proto breathing apparatus recovered the six bodies entombed in the pit,.<ref name=":4" /> |
In 1924 a group of trained volunteer rescue teams using Proto breathing apparatus recovered the six bodies entombed in the pit,.<ref name=":4" /> Due the use of breathing apparatus have been used in several incidents with increased confidence in their use which saw reentry of operation of mines<ref name=":6">{{Cite journal|last=Nugent|first=Geoff|last2=Devlin|first2=Seamus|last3=Grieves|first3=John|last4=Cliff|first4=David|last5=Brady|first5=Darren|date=2010|title=Mines rescue guidelines: the next generation|url=https://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://scholar.google.com&httpsredir=1&article=1967&context=coal|journal=Coal Operators' Conference|volume=|pages=|via=}}</ref> |
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The disaster saw a major revision of 1912 NSW Act which was enacted in 1926 which saw the additional regulations to explosives , safety lamps and power of inspectors<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Ghosh|first=Apurna Kumar|last2=Wang|first2=Sentai|date=2014-10|title=Evolution of underground coal mine explosion law in Australia, 1887-2007|url=https://search.informit.org/documentSummary;dn=777954999141312;res=IELIAC|journal=Journal of Australasian Mining History|language=EN|volume=12|pages=81}}</ref>.In 1924 a bill was established to create mine resuce station was tabled in NSW Parliament.<ref name=":2" /> This incident was considered the catalyst for the formation of the Mines Rescue Service in NSW in 1925.<ref name=":4" /> The act caused the establishment of mine rescue stations in four main coal mining districts<ref name=":6" />. |
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== References == |
== References == |
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Revision as of 00:53, 4 November 2020
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (October 2020) |
On the 1st September 1923 there was a fire at No.1 Working at Bellbird Colliery. The accident killed 21 miners and caused legislation changes. At time of the disaster the mine employed 538 people including 369 who worked underground.[1]
Incident
At 1pm on the 1st September 1923 twenty men entered the colliery for their shift.[1] Deputies Eke, Sneddon and Wilson from the day shift were in the mine conducting inspections as a part of the shift handover.[1] At 1:30 pm the inspection was finished and they went to No.4 West Flat.[1] The fire occurred shortly after 1:30pm.[1] The deputies went to No.3 were they found smoke and flames in the air return tunnel.[1] At 2:00 pm an explosion occurred.[1] At 4:00 pm they decided to recover bodies and seal the mine without knowing the source of the fire.[1] Sealing of the mine commenced at 9:30 pm and completed by 1pm the next day This caused six men to be entombed inside the pit[1] Four tunnels were sealed with sand, soil and timber followed by upcast shaft.[2] There seven separate underground explosionsons.[3] At 1:45 pm on the 2nd September 1923 an explosion burst through the seal in the tunnel near killing two volunteers.[2] The manager called the colliery office four times without a response and failed to inform worker of the fire or smoke[2]
Investigation
A coronial inquest and a Royal Commission were conducted.[3] The inquest was held over 9 days from 4 September to 4 October by coroner George Brown at the Cessnock Court House which included a jury of six people and forty two witnesses [2] A second inquest was held by George Brown on 20 May 1925.[2] A report into the incident found may unsafe work practices including smoking in the mines, unreliable emergency phone lines and lack of hazard reduction and reporting.[4] The inquest reveled that some workers did not have safety lamps[5]
Cause
The explosion was caused by methane gas build up which was caused by dust being constantly pushed and reacting to the air.[1] The explosions were caused by the distillation of coal gas within overheated coals heaps which ignited the gas which cause the fire and the explosion would spread the fire.[3] There evidence of heating within heaps of fallen coal which caused the spontaneous combustion.[1] . The use of naked lights through the mine was considered to be cause of the fire[6] . There have been three probable fires of the fire ignition of firedamp or other inflammable gas to contract with naked flame , ignition of coal dust by flame due to overcharged shot or ignition of inflammable gases produced and subsequently ignited by active mine fires[7].
Deaths
All twenty one deaths were caused by carbon monoxide poisoning[3] Many miners died due to being choked by gas.[4] One of the deaths was Mr John B Brown who was the manager of the Aberdare Colliery died while helping the rescue effort.[4] Two bodies were found just inside No.9 West with a further nine bodies and three were found outside the colliery.[1] Discovered a man and a horse inside No.8 West.[1]
Aftermath
Saw the destruction of much of the mining equipment including saw machinery and coal skips.[1] After three weeks No.2 Working was reopened due to the lack of damage.[2]
The disaster caused a debate about the flow of consistent ventilation in mines.[1] Which saw the implementation of stone dusting to reduce the dangers of coal dust.[1] It created a greater public awareness of mining safety,the need for emergency equipment and trained emergency and rescue officers.[5] After the disaster all sources of light were replaced with safety lamps[6].
On the 3rd September a funeral was held in Cessnock which thousands attended.[2] Hundred of miners completed a "marched in honour of their dead comrades".[1] A monument was placed in memorial park near the site of the Bellbird Colliery listing the names of 21 men who lost their lives.[4] Bellbird Tidy Town and Austar completed a restoration of the disaster site[8]. The Miners Federation started a campaign to increase regulations as they believed the accident was preventable[6].
In 1924 a group of trained volunteer rescue teams using Proto breathing apparatus recovered the six bodies entombed in the pit,.[5] Due the use of breathing apparatus have been used in several incidents with increased confidence in their use which saw reentry of operation of mines[9]
The disaster saw a major revision of 1912 NSW Act which was enacted in 1926 which saw the additional regulations to explosives , safety lamps and power of inspectors[10].In 1924 a bill was established to create mine resuce station was tabled in NSW Parliament.[3] This incident was considered the catalyst for the formation of the Mines Rescue Service in NSW in 1925.[5] The act caused the establishment of mine rescue stations in four main coal mining districts[9].
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "An Enduring Sense Of Disaster - The Bellbird Colliery, 1923 | Mine Safety". Australasian Mine Safety Journal. 2019-06-06. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
- ^ a b c d e f g Beauchamp, Clive (September 2011). "The Bellbird Colliery Disaster Cessnock , NSW , 1923 and the Mines Rescue Act ,1925" (PDF). Journal of Australasian Mining History. 9: 1–19.
- ^ a b c d e "Bellbird Colliery Disaster – 1923". CFMEU Mining and Energy. 2017-08-31. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
- ^ a b c d "Bellbird Mine 1923- Mining Accident Database". www.mineaccidents.com.au. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
- ^ a b c d "1923 Bellbird Mine Explosion". www.resourcesregulator.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
- ^ a b c Geale, Rhonda (1990). The First Rescue Station: the development of a mine rescue organization on the northern district coalfield.
- ^ Watson, James Thomas (1924). "Explosions and fires in mines". Transactions of the Institution of Engineers, Australia. 5: 25.
- ^ Robson, Lucie (2013-11-13). "Keeping Bellbird's history alive". The Advertiser - Cessnock. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
- ^ a b Nugent, Geoff; Devlin, Seamus; Grieves, John; Cliff, David; Brady, Darren (2010). "Mines rescue guidelines: the next generation". Coal Operators' Conference.
- ^ Ghosh, Apurna Kumar; Wang, Sentai (2014-10). "Evolution of underground coal mine explosion law in Australia, 1887-2007". Journal of Australasian Mining History. 12: 81.
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