1923 — Feb 8, Electrical arcs & dust explosion, Stag Canon 1 coal mine, Dawson, NM– 120

–120 Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). 1982, p. 315.
–120 Mine Safety and Health Administration, US Dept. of Labor. Historical Summary…, 1998.
–120 National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, CDC. Mine Disasters.
–120 US Mine Rescue Assoc. Mine Disasters…[US]. “…Stag Canon No. 1 Mine Explosion.”

Narrative Information

U.S. Bureau of Mines/D. Harrington: “About 2:20 p.m. an explosion on the main entry spread out the entry to the drift mouth and over most of the workings, killing 120 of the 122 men underground at that time. The explosion coming out of the mine practically destroyed the concrete portal at the Main #1 Entry and blew out the explosion doors at the fan, and otherwise damaged the fan approach at the surface but did not injure the fan itself, temporary repairs renewing air circulation near the mine portal in much less than an hour after the explosion. The quick resumption of ventilation allowed of prompt entrance into the mine carrying fresh air, and this, together with the fact that there so many extended falls of roof in the interior of the mine, made it unwise and unnecessary to try to use oxygen apparatus, hence no apparatus work was done….” (Harrington, D. Report on No. 1 Mine Explosion, Dawson, New Mexico. February 8, 1923. Bureau of Mines, United States Department of the Interior, April 1923, p. 1.)

MSHA Historical Summary of Mine Disasters, Vol. 1, Coal Mines: “….After repairing the fan housing, rescue workers proceeded inside restoring ventilation as they went. About 8 o’clock the next morning two men from an isolated section walked out unaided.

“The explosion demolished rockdust barriers on the main entry and aircourse without stopping. A locomotive had put two loaded cars on the track after dragging them 100 feet, knocking out several timbers in doing so. The trolley and feed wires came down on the steel cars, and arcs set off the dense cloud of dust dislodged from the timbers.

“The explosion was propagated through the mine by the coal dust. Sprinkling had been confined to wetting cars and the floor of entries and was ineffective. Rockdusting and rockdust barriers were recommended.” (Mine Safety and Health Administration, United States Department of Labor. Historical Summary of Mine Disasters in the United States: Volume 1 (Coal Mines 1810-1958. Washington, DC: 1998.

Source

Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1982.

Harrington, D. Report on No. 1 Mine Explosion, Dawson, New Mexico. February 8, 1923. Bureau of Mines, United States Department of the Interior, April 1923. Accessed 5-28-2020 at: https://usminedisasters.miningquiz.com/saxsewell/stag_canon_1923.pdf

Mine Safety and Health Administration, United States Department of Labor. Historical Summary of Mine Disasters in the United States: Volume 1 (Coal Mines 1810-1958. Washington, DC: 1998.

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Mining Safety and Health Research.. Mining Disasters (Incidents with 5 or more Fatalities). NIOSH, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2-26-2013 update. Accessed at: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/mining/statistics/disall.htm
and http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/mining/statistics/content/allminingdisasters.html

United States Mine Rescue Association. Mine Disasters in the United States. “Phelps Dodge and Company Stag Canon No. 1 Mine Explosion, Dawson, Colfax County, New Mexico, February 8, 1923.”