The Albion Colliery Disaster

Description

Albion was the scene of one of the worst disasters ever to occur in the South Wales Coalfield, second only to the later disaster at the Universal Colliery at Senghenydd in 1913.

At 4 o'clock on Saturday 23 June 1894, the night shift had just begun and the workers were clearing dust and repairing underground roadways when a massive explosion on the Groves level occurred. It was caused by the ignition of coal dust following an explosion of firedamp, and resulted in the deaths of 290 men and boys. Of the 125 horses underground, only two survived. Despite 16 men emerging from the disaster with their lives, only five of these survived. There were no female victims as it had been made illegal for women and children under the age of 12 to work underground in the mines, with the pit ponies replacing them to haul coal, which is why so many horses died alongside the workers. The youngest victim was only 13 and the oldest victim was 60, with the average age being 28 years old.

The bodies brought to the surface were initially assessed and stored in the colliery's stable hayloft, that acted as a temporary morgue. Many were so badly mutilated that identification was virtually impossible, and there were several instances of corpses being carried to the wrong houses. Another cause of confusion was that no-one knew how many men were below ground when the explosion occurred.

Almost everyone in the community lost someone in the disaster. One household in Howell Street lost 11 members: the father, his four sons, and six lodgers.