tarboat's photos with the keyword: disaster

Plaque in the former Hockley Methodist Chapel (now Poynton Christian Fellowship) commemorating the successful extinguishing of the fire in the local pits. The colliery report for 1849 states: 'On 26th January last we had an awful fire in three of the pits, Lord Pit, Lady Pit, and Albert Pit, which, I am thankful to say, was providentially extinguished without the loss of life.'

Memorial to the 57 men killed in the explosion in the Banbury seam at No.4 Pit, Sneyd Colliery, Burslem, 1st January 1942. It also commemorates the rescue teams who worked to try to save them and also recover the bodies. The official cause of the disaster was found to be that tubs had derailed and damaged an electric cable. Subsequent sparking has ignited coal dust and precipitated the explosion.

Another document from the Tarchives The explosion at Pretoria Pit occurred on 21st December 1910 and was the second worst mining accident in England, and the third worst in Britain. The recent centenary of this tragic event has recently been marked by the publication of an excellent book by Alan Davies . The document in my collection is a report by three representatives of the Miners' Federation of Great Britain who were deputed by that body to act as its representatives at the inquest into the deaths, and subsequent public inquiry into the explosion. Their report reflects the findings of the inquiry and makes a number of comments regarding the operation and supervision of the colliery and concludes in calling for alterations to the relevant Mines' Act. The document came into my possession from the boardroom of the Poynton Co-operative Society shortly before the building was demolished. I was given a selection of records relating to the Co-operative Society in Poynton and also the Poynton Collieries branch of the Lancashire and Cheshire Miners' Federation that at one time met there. I presume that every branch was sent a copy of the report.