Norton Colliery Explosion 1912

In spite of its pleasant and rural setting the village of Norton-in-the-moors actually grew up around coal. From the middle Ages onwards the Lords of the Manor and other proprietors wrought extensively the top seams of coal by means of the Bell pit, Gin pit and Foot rail type of mining. Thousands of tons of coal were extracted in an attempt to satisfy the pottery kilns, it required ten tons of coal to fire one ton of clay.

The nearby Iron foundries of Norton Green, Milton and Cobridge were also supplied. Incidentally, the huge chains, which supported the Menai Straits Suspension Bridge, were forged at Norton Green in 1829. The local newspaper ran the story that an explosion took place on Saturday afternoon February 24 th 1912 resulting in the death of one man and injury of another two. But for the fact that that it was Saturday half-holiday, about 500 men would have been working in the pit and the results would in all probability have been disastrous. As a matter of fact only three pit fettlers (shaft inspectors and repairers) were at work at the time.

By 1.45 p.m. the pit, apart from 50 horses, was deserted. The fan was allowed to slow down and under ground fell into silence. At 3 p.m. the pit fettlers, John Mason, John Wakefield and William Lockett, got onto the wooden platform installed on the top of the cage in the up cast shaft. Each man, carrying two oil lamps, adjusted their safety harness and the signal was given to lower the cage. When they descended about 80 yards they found that the signal wire was fast and returned to the surface for a gong on which to signal until they liberated the wire.

Arriving at the Ten-Feet inset, Wakefield gave the signal to stop, then stepped into the narrow passage to inspect the pumping shaft. Mason and Lockett then continued their descent as far as the Hard mine inset, where repairs had to be done to the shaft brickwork and the expansion joint to one of the steam pipes.

As the voices carried clearly in the echoing shaft, Lockett called up to Wakefield that it would take some time to accomplish the work and that he would knock on the pipes when he was ready to ascend.

Having time on his hands Wakefield went through the separation doors and into the pumping shaft to signal to Louis Meadowcroft, the pump attendant, who was in charge of the winding gears in the pump shaft. In this way he kept in touch with the surface.

It was now 3.30 p.m. Suddenly, and without warning the shaft was shattered by a thunderous roar from below, Wakefield was bowled over and sent rolling through the separation doors and into the pump shaft. He collapsed and remembered no more.

The shock wave in the down cast shaft damaged the two cages, hurling the heavy steel plates, at the shaft top, into the headgears and scattered debris over a wide area. Roofs, walls and windows of the lamp house and offices were damaged. Meanwhile, Wakefield recovered, he was dazed and suffering from chokedamp. Fortunately Lou Meadowcroft was still at the top of the pump shaft and heard Wakefield,s knocking on the pipes. The water-bucket was lowered immediately, into which the fettler managed to crawl and was wound up to the surface. “Tell the engine man to wind up the cage” he gasped, “Mason and Lockett must still be on the cage platform.” Sam hesitated, as it was against the regulations to move the cage with out a signal. But he had no other choice, so he set the winding-engine in motion.

The cage slowly surfaced with its pathetic cargo. Lockett was dead; his head had protruded beyond the edge of the platform and struck the framework at the shaft top. Mason was unconscious.

Later Mason said it was like a steam pipe bursting below, followed by a continual roar and a gust of wind, which extinguished all the lights. He experienced difficulty in breathing and fell upon the cage. Lockett clung to the cage for an instant and then fell across mason and both men became unconscious.

A call was sent to the North Staffs Rescue Station and within 23 minutes they arrived at the scene and found that the explosion had been extremely violent. They alerted the surrounding collieries and soon colliery officials, engineers, medical units, highly trained colliery rescue brigades and police were on their way to Norton colliery.

The boom of the explosion had been heard far and wide. People rushed out of their houses and into the streets. Volumes of thick black smoke, soot and dust were coiling upwards and into the sky. Rescue teams from Chatterley Whitfield, Berry hill, Kidsgrove and Norton, led by their captains, J. Brindley, Tom lowe,
A. Lovatt and another Tom Lowe were eager to descend the shaft, despite the smoke and danger.

At 7 p.m. Mr. Hugh Johnstone, H.M. Divisional Inspector of Mines, arrived with two other inspectors, Mr. W. Wynne and Mr. W. Saint. It was the opinion of the mining engineers who saw the devastation, that it was the most violent explosion that had taken place in any colliery in the country. Had it happened a few hours earlier the 500 men and boys who had been working there that morning would not have survived.

Adjusting their oxygen-breathing apparatus, the inspector and his platoon made the nerve-racking descent of the smoke-filled shaft, 380 yards deep.

Arriving in the pit bottom they headed into the nearby stables where they found the horses dead in their stalls, the deadly carbon monoxide had snuffed out their lives, 50 in total.