Wullie Lopez

Trapped by the inrush of sludge

Well he used to talk about it ken and what he said at one time was “Well soon be up through to the daisy’s” He mentioned that, as I said before that, before it happened we were always on different shifts and we never got to see much of him ken. But I remember him talking about that saying that they’d soon be up to the daisies. But they knew they were getting close to the surface, they more or less knew they were getting close to the surface, be the way it would be rising I suppose. I was working in a district called Garrowscairn and ken there were two in a place, stoop and room places with a chap, an older chap than me by the name of Tom Brown, a good wee neighbour to work with, nae problems with him. We worked together for 2 months before the disaster happened. No. There was nothing unusual, the only thing was the word we got, and it must have been 7 or the back of 7pm. We had to go to the end of the West mine, that was the main mine from the pit bottom into the workings. Nobody knew we didn’t get telt. No nothing like that. We were just told to go there. There was no reason why we had to go, we weren’t told that something that had happened or whatever, and we were just wondering why we had to go there.  It was what we call the dook runner, the fellow that ran the dook, bringing empties in and taking out the full ones. It was him that came in and telt us.  No we didn’t, we were just dumb foundered why we had to go there and no reason given ken. It was quite a steep dook that, it would take maybe in the region of ¼ of an hour. It was a long dook.  Well there were a lot of men had gathered there from different districts and it was them that telt, we heard them talking, saying that this had fell in up in Number 5, South Boig. I had no idea what it was like because I’d never been in that area myself. In fact, I was only in two different districts when I was in the castle at that time. We kent then because some of the men has went out… had went out the main West Mine and this stuff had come rolling into them: water and then this… they said it was like a big midden coming in…. a big dung midden.  Peat and bog.

Keeping up morale

I went with two fellows, I didn’t know where they going but I knew what they were meaning. They were meaning to go through… they thought that at a certain bit, that if they took the stoppings out, ken a bit that had been stopped off. If we get in through there and we get these stoppings out they could get through to another mine which was going up through to old Knockshinnoch: Ken the Castle was deeper. But when they went to look there was no chance of them getting through these stoppings at all. So they just had to turn.  I didn’t know anything about that district but I went just to see. Then the next thing was we were getting information from the surface because the telephone was working. Oh well it gave you a wee bit of relief. They were communicating and we knew what they were trying to do. When did you realise that your father in law was missing? Well I had an idea myself, I knew that’s where he worked and there were none of the men from that district among them. Because the men in the pit bottom, when it started the inrush, I think they all got up the pit as quick as they could and that was it. The pit bottom was filled up just in no time after that. When did you get word about getting through Bank No6? Well as I said again there was communication through the phone and they’re were word came through that the Brigade was trying to hack their way through at a certain point… Was it No 25? I think it was No25 again I didn’t know that area either and they had to go down and work from this side, from the side where the men where. I think they went down in three’s. I went down one of the times, I just went down once. Most of the men were just down once before it was put through by the Brigade. How far had you to dig through? I think they reckoned it was 25 ft or something; I’m not right sure but I think that was the figure. But when it went through then the gas came through at the same time and it had to be blocked off again and screened off. How did that affect the mood of the men? It was just screened off quick after it went through. When they realised what was happening, they had their Glennie lamps and their detectors, the brigade. That was much later…On the 1st night how did you spend your time... Well they were just… the men were all sitting talking and some of them, were talking about their families and what would their families do if they didn’t get out of there. Everybody was concerned for a while but the next day some of them were singing, some of the boys were singing. Just to try and keep the morale up a wee bit ken.

The Waiting Game.

 Aye we were all together, aye we were just getting instructions from the surface ken want was going on, what they were planning to do. Who was the 1st Rescue Brigade to come through? Can you remember who that was? No… It wasn’t a local brigade I don’t think. I don’t think it was a local brigade, I think it was one of the teams from out with the district. What was the reaction of the men once the brigade came through? Well… everybody got an uplift, but it wasn’t just right well go sort of thing. We had to wait to see how the ventilation went. Did they bring food through with them? Aye they brought something… I can’t remember what it was aye they brought water and they brought food. Aye think some of them thought it was just a matter of right we’ll go! But eh it wasn’t safe to go and I think that some thought that Brigade was putting them off but they were putting them off for a safety aspect. Some of them were just disappointed more or less that was the whole thing. They were saying oh aye it’s alright for them; they’ve got their equipment on and that. But you just thought about… Well if you tried to get though there you would be a goner more or less. When did you get word that you would be going to use the Salvus? I think it would be later on that day or that night. We got word about these things, these respirators; I think they came from Germany they come. And of course again that was wee bit uplift to the men.

The Rescue Begins

Did you know that Dave Park was coming down the pit? No we didn’t know, but he came through with the brigade, the 1st lot. That was the 1st that I’d seen him, the 1st time I’d heard of him being there. I didn’t realise it was him till I was telt who it was. What did he say to the men? Well he just more or less told them that they had the hole through and every effort was being made to get them out. That he wanted to get these respirators that was on the go at the time, they were coming over from Germany, they were brought over from Germany* we got a wee bit training on it and then they took us through. Did he show you how to use it? Aye the Brigade did aye... The telt us this will last you about ½ an hour, but all going well you can go out through there to the air base in less than that; Which we did. Did the rescue begin straight away once the apparatus came through? More or less when they came to the bit where the men where, they just got a wee bit if training and they started… Well there was one or two of them ill and they were taking the elderly men first. They produced a rota list, what was the reaction to the rota? As I said they were taking the elderly 1st and them that was ill. They were going 1st and eh the younger ones were left to the last. I was among the last. How long had you to wait? I think it was about 1.30am on the Sunday morning when I got up. About 12 hours. Where you aware of the increase in the gas? Aye, we did get told that’s why they had to block it off. I don’t know how they were performing with their fans on the other side. I think it was a risky business. In the Knockshinnoch side the gas was rising too wasn’t it? It was aye, even where the men were. Where they were sitting, they could detect the gas. Did you feel any effects of it? Not really you were sitting you weren’t up in it.

The journey through the gas.

Did you ever lose hope or doubt that the rescue would succeed? I thought from the very beginning that we would never get out… I thought when I seen it… when I went out to see, out the mine and looked over the position and what was what. This rescue from Bank No6, I thought to myself well I cannot see this happening. Just to myself I was thinking these things. How did the Knockshinnoch men see it, were they confident about it? I don’t know… I think the majority of them would be like me, they would be thinking- this isn’t going to happen this rescue isn’t going to happen. At what point did you realise that it was going to happen? Well when the hole went through, I knew then there would be a possibility if they can clear the air, the area of the gas then we’ve a chance or as what happened, we can get breathing apparatus that can deal with it… we’ve another chance. So it was one of two things.
So when it was your turn and you were ready to go and you put your apparatus on, can you describe who took you out and the journey through the gas?  Aye there were two of the brigade, one at the front and one behind, I think we went through in 5’s. Once got the first two or three minutes after we went through, I felt well were going now, we’ll manage now… The 1st person I met was my older brother when we got to the fresh air base and then we went along… my older brother next to me… and then further along, I met my oldest brother, that was my two brothers.
What was it like to see them?   Oh well they were cuddling me and ken….
It must have been some relief... Oh aye… See when you were coming out the road, could you see the line of rescue men all the way out? Aye you could see them… aye they were posted right along in case anything went wrong. Where did you take the salvus off? When we got to the fresh air base, it was a fresh air base and when we got there we took them off and there was a Doctor there, the Doctor examined you and an old chap, he used to take the 1st aid team, I was in his 1st aid team at Knockshinnoch Castle: John Wilson, he was the magazine man at the pit and John was a great 1st aid man and he said you’ll no be long till your back on the job” ken, more or less.

Coming up the pit.

So from the fresh air base did you require any help, did you walk all the way up the pit? No it was a man riding haulage, just wee hutches, wee bogies… How did it feel going up the mine? Well I was fine and fresh going up the mine… aye. When you came up to the pithead, what was the scene like there? Oh there was a lot of folk there, lots of folk there. Salvation Army people there to. And of course we were hurried into the baths but didn’get talking to nobody, they just hurried us into the baths and there were ambulances there taking them to Ballochmyle. Did you go straight to Ballochmyle, did you meet your family? I just seen the wife once and she gave us ten capstan and a box of matches. I smoked at that time… and it was a Salvation Army fellow that gave her them. She had been talking to them, her and my sister. He had been asking her “Have you got anybody in this?” and she told him about her dad and her husband. No she had brought the cigs herself but the Salvation Army bloke gave her an orange for her to give to me. That’s what it was.
So you were taken away to Ballochmyle, what was it like when you arrived at Ballochmyle? There was a bit of a stir about Ballochmyle at the time tae wae all the men coming in, but once we got organised and examined by the Dr., we could all chat to each other. We were just there to the next day and then we got home. I got home anyway.

Waiting for news of the missing.

What was it like when you went back to the house? Oh dear… well as I said, we stayed with her father and mother when we got married. So when I went home everybody was in tears and then when they saw me it made it worse. It was sad sort of home coming for me and I mean I knew what it would be like and I was dreading getting home. How did the community and the Coal Board support the families of the missing? I don’t know… I don’t know much about that… If they did… I don’t know… I cannot remember anything about that. Did you get involved in the recovery operation? No… No… I was off my work for… the Dr. kept you off for about three weeks I was off and then I got word that I had to go back to Coalburn. I never was back at Knockshinnoch. What was the mood around the village regarding the missing men? Oh it was a sad, sad place because this was a place that nearly everybody had some relations, they had some relations involved in it… the disaster. I mean 116 men and 13 men lost; they would be relatives of nearly everybody that was in the disaster. I mean with the amount of people at the pithead, you knew a lot of the folk, you knew their connections. To some of the men that were being rescued and some of the men that were lost. How did you get word and when did you get word that they had recovered your father in-law? Well the thing was her mother was up, she was up before us and it was in the newspaper in the morning that his body had been recovered and that had been the 1st that we had knew about it. So had it been recovered the previous night? Aye… I think it was. We never got any word from the Coal Board or any official we got no information. Then the next day, later on the minister arrived from her church, Mr. McGurk no it wasn’t it wasn’t Mr. McGurk at that time. Mr… oh I forget his name. He arrived he got word. I don’t know how he got word but I suppose he would get it in the paper to. But that’s how her Mother got word anyway.

It never goes out your mind.

Why did you go back working to the pit after such an experience, did you ever - think I’m not going back? No… not really. You just felt it was…there was nothing else for you more or less. You were married now and you had to work. Well it affected me… more or less it affected the whole family because his body wasn’t gotten till…  I think it was in January sometime. That was going through your mind all the time, even at your work you were just wondering what’s happening. How were they getting on with the rescue with the work at Knockshinnoch looking for the bodies? Oh aye it never goes out your mind for a long time. Mm mm… I think it was all… from start to finish… You had a different outlook all the time, what was going on the different things going through your mind. Would this work? Would that work?  Will we get out? Will we not go out? But in the end you’re thinking about your family and your thinking about your own parents. No… Its… you just can’t describe it…