At the inquest into the disaster, Peter Shaw , coal cutter, 5 John Street, Higher Ince, said he went down No.4 Drift about 11 p.m. on January 5th and was on his way to the coalface. He was near the Rise Unit when he heard a dull thud followed by clouds of dust. He had not felt any difficulty in breathing until the dust came. They got out to No.4 brow when they felt it was safer and the air was clearer. Someone remarked about there being men in the level. He could see the lights of the lamps and on going to investigate came across one of the men. He went back for assistance and some men were brought out, several being unconscious. One of them was dead. The men were found lying within a few yards of each other and seemed to have been following one another. They saw smoke was somewhere in front of them. When they decided return they had covered a distance of 270 yards from where the last body was found. He did not know the cause of his lamp going out or why the one he found was out. The rush of wind or the presence of gas would do it. In his opinion the rush of wind along the level would put out the lamp he found, but he admitted that his own lamp went out without any wind. He found no sign of fire.

In answer to Mr. Blackledge, Shaw said he had been on this coal face for three years and he had never come across anything sufficient to cause alarm. On further questioning he said he believed a "stopping was blown out and then they found they could hardly breathe”.

Shaw told the Coroner that recently there had been a little gas at the top end of the face, but it was hardly worth taking notice of. The last time he was down he did not notice gas. He said he could smell it when he got on to his machine. He had never reported it. There was so little it didn't matter.

Edwin Hunter 5, Whelly Wigan, coal cutter, said he was about 20 yards from the Rise Brow when he felt a gush of wind. Clouds of dust came and he shouted to his mate, James Durkin, but got no reply and turned and went back to the bottom of the jig. There he met Peter Shaw and two other men and guided them to No.4 brow were they were safe and in fresh air. With Catterall and Benson he returned to the coal face to see if he could give any assistance because he knew there were some men at the top of the jig.

At the top of the delivery they found that there had been a fall of dirt and they were unable to get any further. He had never known the indicator show the presence of gas, neither had he smelled any.

Frank Rigby, a member of the permanent corps stationed at the Mines Rescue Station at Boothstown, 9, Orchard Avenue, Boothstown, said he was in charge of a team of rescue workers who descended the No.4 pit about 12.40 a.m. on January 6th.

They went along the west level and made tests for gas, Things were rather difficult and he could not get a definite show owing to the smoke. The light of his lamp went out.

They reached No.4 brow, From the time they reached the pit bottom they had been wearing the oxygen apparatus.

They located the first body 100 yards from the belt brow lying face downward on the belt. The second body was 40 yards further on, in the same position as the first. The third and fourth bodies were located shortly afterwards face downwards in the travelling road. The fifth body was about 12 to 15 yards along the belt level. After examining the stopping, which was intact, the team returned to its base.

He saw three lamps, two electric and one oil. The latter was not lighted but undamaged.

The next day he took a rescue team down to try and ascertain where the smoke was coming from. After going along the belt level, past where the last body was found. They found the bottom of the slant full of water vapour. They turned up the higher side slant and had gone about 60 or 70 yards, when they found a fall of roof which was rather difficult to get over and the heat was so intense they decided to return. It was evident that the source of the smoke was somewhere in front of them, When they decided to return they had covered a distance of 270 yards from where the last body was found.

He did not know the cause of his lamp going out or why the one he found was out. The rush of wind or the presence of gas would do it. In his opinion the rush of wind along the level would put the lamp he found out, but he admitted that his own lamp went out without any wind. He found no sign of fire.

One of the men who was injured, Thomas Rafferty aged 47, colliery dataller, of 17, Charles Street, Tyldesley, told how he joined a party of shot lighters and two haulage hands, Kennedy and Houghton and assisted to move some tubs of timber. They were waiting to go along the level when a cloud of dust surrounded them. He turned his back to it and put his scarf round his mouth. It affected his breathing. The others went back to the pit bottom and he made his way out but after he had gone about 50 yards he collapsed. On recovering he found himself in hospital. He had never felt any difficulty in breathing or anything wrong with the atmosphere.

Herbert Holland aged 32, colliery fireman, of 345, Warrington Road, Abram, said he finished his duty at 11p.m. on January 5th. He examined the pit on several occasions, including the district known as the Rise Unit. The last examination finished at 10p.m. He tested the district for gas with a flame lamp, but found no gas on the face, only on the top of No.7 brow. He estimated it at one per cent, and it was about two feet from the roof. The air was clear at the bottom of the brow. From the top of No.7 brow it was in the general body of the air to the bottom. It could only be found at the top of the brow and he did not think it was any detriment to working. He thought the ventilation was sound. The condition of the Rise Unit was better on that day than the day before. It had not been good at one time, a week previously. On that afternoon they withdrew the men from the district because they found some indications of heating all round the top of No.7 brow. On that occasion he went up the higher side slant but found no signs of heating there. He found gas at the same point as the heating. Apart from that occasion he was quite satisfied with the condition of the mine. The heating indicated to him that there might be combustion in the old workings which began at the top of the No.7 Brow.

There was a stopping at each end of the old workings. After the findings of the week previous, the stopping at the No.7 brow end was reinforced and the other stopping was extended. He examined the work as it progressed and was pleased with it, thinking it to be a big improvement. He had found gas on previous occasions and he had been reporting it in writing for about two months but he had never found more than one per cent. The only thing to suggest was better ventilation or the removal of the cause of the gas. He did not think that the gas he had found was coming from the face but that it was bleeding from the stopping at the top of No.7 brow and the work that was going on was to try and prevent it coming through the stopping on the top level was to prevent the air going round the old workings. The stopping on No.7 brow was 25 yards thick and was built of dirt, stone dust and two brick walls, each a yard in thickness. The other stopping was built of stone dust and sand in bags. The other fireman, William Cooney, was in charge of the work of building the stoppings and he received instructions from the under manager.