The Mt Kembla Mine Disaster, Kembla Heights. There were 280 workers underground at the time of the explosion, including young boys.

The subsequent investigation found the explosion was caused by a build-up of … Recovery of the bodies took several days, and all but one were recovered in a courageous rescue operation. The disaster took place on Thursday 31 July 1902, at precisely three minutes past two o'clock in the afternoon.

[7][9] The disaster was caused by gas seeping undetected from the coal seam in a disused area of the mine that had been mined out. The Explosion At 2pm on July 31, 1902, Mt Kembla Colliery exploded, killing 96 men and boys.

In the Bulli Mine Disaster William Walker, aged 40 years, and both his stepsons, George and Henry Cole, were killed. Windy Gully cemetery was created on a half acre of company land to receive the bodies of the victims of the Mt Kembla Mine Disaster of 1902. Black Dust – 5 part series on YouTube by WIN News Illawarra – Mt Kembla Mine Explosion 110th Anniversary, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kembla_Heights,_New_South_Wales&oldid=920666594, Australian Statistical Geography Standard 2016 ID same as Wikidata, Use Australian English from September 2017, All Wikipedia articles written in Australian English, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 11 October 2019, at 03:55. There were 280 workers underground at the time of the explosion, including young boys. It was not until 1925 that the ventilation system at Mt Kembla was replaced, and it was years before naked lights were finally banned. The rush of air and gas stirred up the coal dust clinging to the roof and walls of the mine. The Mount Kembla Colliery site is significant for its association with the Kembla Heights village, a purpose built company village, as evidence of the evolving relationship between mines, mining companies and their workers and for its association with the Mount Kembla Mine Disaster 1902, the worst mining disaster in Australia. 31 July is the anniversary of Australia's worst industrial disaster, in 1902, when 96 miners lost their lives in an explosion at Mt Kembla Colliery in NSW. Kembla were shattered by a loud explosion. Authorised by T Maher CFMEU Mining and Energy Division, Sydney, http://www.illawarramercury.com.au/story/2441786/what-happened-tragic-day-of-mt-kembla-mine-disaster/, Warning to casual miners as Adero settlement leaves workers with diddly squat, BHP apprenticeships short-changing young Queenslanders, Mt Kembla - Australia's worst industrial disaster, 1902. The Pioneer Kerosene Works (1860–1878) Australia's first shale mining and kerosene manufacturing plant was owned by John Graham and situated at Kembla Heights.

We are here to advocate and protect our members' wages and conditions. The entire village of Kembla Heights is a heritage conservation area under the Wollongong City Council Development Control Plan "Kembla Heights is the most intact mining village in the Wollongong Local Government Area with its simple, consistent late Victorian and early Federation period cottages". Mount Kembla colliery disaster, 31 July 1902: report of the Royal Commission together with minutes of evidence and exhibits. Recommendations from the inquiry included more testing for gas, better ventilation, improved shot firing practices and the abolition of naked flame lights. [8], Mt Kembla Coal and Oil Company's mine in Kembla Heights was the site of the worst industrial accident in Australia's history, the Mt Kembla Mine Disaster. [9] It was originally known as the Kembla Heights Cemetery or Presbyterian Cemetery. CFMEU Mining and Energy represents over 20,000 workers, mainly in coal mining and also in metalliferous mining, coal ports, power stations, oil refineries and other parts of the oil and gas production chain. Stuart Piggin : Faith of Steel and Mount Kembla Mine Disaster research materials, University of Wollongong Archives, Mount Kembla Colliery Disaster, 31 July, 1902: report of the Royal Commission, University of Wollongong Archives. A rock fall pushed the gas out into the tunnels where men were working. Mt Kembla Coal and Oil Company's mine in Kembla Heights was the site of the worst industrial accident in Australia's history, the Mt Kembla Mine Disaster. The incident happened when a large section of the unsupported roof in a goaf collapsed with considerable force, pushing air and methane gas into the main tunnel. By the final count, 96 miners – some as young as 14, had been killed, including two rescuers who succumbed to the gas during their attempt to rescue mine workers. Mt Kembla colliery closed in 1970. We must never forget the human price paid for coal. Stuart Piggin: Mount Kembla Mine Disaster research materials. BUY IT NOW “She's gone up! Richardson, Wendy (1989) "Windy Gully" Currency Press. A Royal Commission of Inquiry followed. [3] It is in fact the last remaining coal mining village that is company owned in the Illawarra today. The health and safety of our members is a prime focus and an issue on which we will never compromise. That, for my part, is the essential story of the Mount Kembla disaster, and, although it concerns a little mining village on the fringe of the British Empire, it is unlikely to lose its relevance before its bicentennial commemoration. Here, Jamie Radford revisits this tragedy. The blast, which was heard in nearby Wollongong, created 33 widows and took the fathers of 120 children. [3][11] In all, about a third of the victims were buried at Windy Gully, most either Presbyterian or Methodist. The Dendrobium Colliery (Illawara Coal, South32) is located in Kembla Heights. [6] This plant was purchased by the Mt Kembla Coal and Oil Company (1878–1913) who developed a new coal mine to the north of Kerosene site, later renamed Mt Kembla Colliery Ltd (1913–1946) and finally purchased by Australian Iron and Steel, AIS (1946–1970). You can read a more in depth record of the disaster in the Illawarra Mercury: http://www.illawarramercury.com.au/story/2441786/what-happened-tragic-day-of-mt-kembla-mine-disaster/. The NSW Parliament suspended sittings, such was the shock felt in the broader population. This incident claimed the lives of 96 people. A royal commission concerning the disaster, held from March to May 1903, confirmed the gas and coal-dust theory accepted by the earlier coroner's jury. Kembla Mine disaster, Self published, Zam, Darian 'Coalfaces'(2016), Self published, Murray, Noel J. 31 July is the anniversary of Australia's worst industrial disaster, in 1902, when 96 miners lost their lives in an explosion at Mt Kembla Colliery in NSW. Conduct of Mr Rogers, as Manager, Mount Kembla Colliery 1903 (Legislative Assembly NSW) PDF, 46232.57 KB, Stuart Piggin: Mount Kembla Mine Disaster research materials, What happened tragic day of Mt Kembla Mine Disaster, Jamie Radford, 25 July 2014, A Reflection on the Mt Kembla Disaster, January 2003, Henry Lee, University of Wollongong, All legislation for NSW mining workplaces, WHS (Mines and Petroleum Sites) legislation, Changes to Radiation Control Act info sheet, Review of regulator or inspector decisions, Applications for certification, licensing & registration, Safety and Health Representatives training package, Small mines and quarries health and safety roadshow.

The disaster took place on Thursday 31 July 1902, at precisely three … When the gas reached the naked flame of colliery workers light, it ignited instantly and caused a series of further gas and coal dust explosions.

[4] The historic Windy Gully Cemetery is located in this portion of Kembla Heights and is still company owned.

Trenor, Paul (2013) SPIRITS OF WINDY GULLY – the Mt.

What happened tragic day of Mt Kembla Mine Disaster, Jamie Radford, 25 July 2014. Kembla Mine suffered the worst mining disaster in Australia’s history when a gas explosion killed 96 men and boys. On 31 July 1902, an explosion at Mount Kembla Coal Mine took the lives of 96 workers.

The story of the Australia's deadliest industrial disaster and its impact on three men and their families. Timber getters were in the area from the 1810s in search of valuable red cedar (Toona ciliata). (2008), "Memories of Times Gone By", Self Published, Stone, Kevin C. (2002), "A Profile History of Mount Kembla", Self Published, McNamara, John Leo (2007), "Life at Cordeaux River" Self Published, Herben, Carol (2002), "Mt Kembla 1902 Mine Disaster Commemoration Cemetery Walks", Mt Kembla : Mt Kembla Mine Disaster Centenary Commemoration Committee, Piggin, Stuart and Lee, Henry (1992), "The Mt Kembla Disaster", Melbourne : Oxford University Press in association with Sydney University Press, Suburb of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia, The Mt Kembla Mine Disaster, Kembla Heights, "Wollongong DCP 2009 Chapter E11 – Heritage Conservation", "Kembla Heights Conservation Area | NSW Environment & Heritage", "The Pioneer Kerosene Works at American Creek, Mount Kembla, New South Wales 1865 – 1878, Chronology", "Mt Kembla Colliery Including Site of Mine workings, Portal, Mine Air Shaft and Pit Pony Stables | NSW Environment & Heritage", "Nebo Colliery* | NSW Environment & Heritage", Kembla Jottings – timeline, history, Mt Kembla Mine Disaster and victims list, community links. Mt Kembla Mine Disaster. The Day in 1902 – the Mt Kembla Disaster, short YouTube film. 1878 – 1913 The Mount Kembla Coal & Oil Co. 1913 – 1946 Mount Kembla Collieries Ltd. 1946 – 1970 Australian Iron & Steel Ltd. 1902 – Multiple Fatalities; At 2pm, on the 31 st July, 1902, Mt. The explosion produced odourless carbon monoxide gas that filled the tunnels, accounting for more loss of life than the explosion itself. The gas ignited and, combined with the now airborne coal dust, set off the initial explosion that blew down the main tunnel with such force that it destroyed everything in its path. Mt Kembla has a rich history, closely associated with coal mining. !”The shout could be heard across the mountain as the peaceful hamlets of Mt.