Warren Vale Colliery Disaster
The Neighbourhood Scene
It appears that this was a new pit, which had only been worked about 12 months.
The scene in the neighbourhood was of the most heartrending description.
Mourning, lamentation, and woe, from those who could offer no help, while those who could assist, did so with a degree of zeal and self-devotion which merited far greater praise than words could convey.
The men who came out of the pit exhausted, after only a short break, were eager to enter the pit, to aid the less fortunate.
Some of the injured men were taken to their own homes. Most of the dead bodies were taken to the neighbouring public-houses, including the Star Inn.
The supposed cause of the accident was a fall of a portion of the roof of the pit, stopping the usual current of ventilation, liberating a large quantity of foul air, and forcing it into the parts where miners were working with candles.
By Saturday evening more details became available. continued »
