§ Mr. HERRIOTTSasked the Secretary for Mines if he has had a report from his inspectors indicating the cause of the explosion on Sunday, 2nd March, at the Bishop Middleham colliery, county Durham, whereby four men were injured?
674W
§ Mr. T. WILLIAMSasked the Secretary for Mines if he will provide a tabular statement showing the financial results of colliery working for the year ending 31st December, 1929, comparable with Table 9, page 40, of the Report of the Royal Commission on the Coal Industry (1925), Volume 3.
§ Mr. TURNER,pursuant to his reply [OFFICIAL REPORT, 5th March, 1930; col. 466, Vol. 236] supplied the following statement:
§ Mr. TURNERSo far I have received only a preliminary report on the facts of the accident. It appears that two stone drifts are being driven from an old shaft with a view ultimately to connecting up with Mainsforth Colliery. One of these drifts struck the Hutton seam of coal on Saturday last, and the ex- 675W plosion took place shortly before midnight on Sunday while the deputy was making an inspection of this drift. I regret to say that as a result the deputy himself and three other persons were slightly burned. The cause of the accident has not yet been determined, but the fullest investigation is being made.