1939 — July 14, Duvin Coal Company mine dust explosion, Providence, KY — 28
Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 10-28-2024 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/
–28 National Fire Protection Assoc. Spreadsheet on Large Loss of Life Fires (as of Feb 2003).
–28 National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, CDC. Mine Disasters.
–28 US Bureau of Mines. Report of Explosion, Duvin Mine…Providence…[KY], July 14, 1939.
–28 United States Mine Rescue Association. Mine Disasters in the United States. “Duvin…”
Narrative Information
US Bureau of Mines. Report of Explosion, Duvin Mine…Providence…[KY], July 14, 1939:
“About 7:20 p.m. July 14, 1939, an explosion occurred in the Duvin Mine of the Duvin Coal Company, Providence, Webster County, Kentucky, resulting in the death of 28 men. At the time of the explosion there were 38 men in the mine; 33 of whom were in the explosion area, the other five were not in any way affected by the explosion, and in fact did not know of it until word was sent to them although they had felt a slight rush of wind.
“Of the 33 men in the explosion area, 19 were killed almost instantly by the explosion, 9 were suffocated by afterdamp[1] after making a vain attempt to seal themselves in by hanging curtains across the entries in which they were working, and five escaped. Four of the five who escaped received minor bruises and cuts. The 9 men who were suffocated left notes stating they were still alive at 1:25 a.m., July 15, six hours after the explosion occurred; they would doubtless have been rescued alive had they erected good tight stoppings in place of the poorly installed curtains. The bodies of these nine men were reached about 1:3- a.m. in the morning of July 17.
“The explosion was of limited extent and violence and is believed to have been due to the ignition of coal dust by the accidental detonation of a quantity of permissible explosives while the shot firer was making up primers. The leg wires of the detonator had apparently come in contact with the rail which was on the return circuit for haulage locomotives, with exposed return wires in the splice of the cutting machine cable, or with some stray current.
“No rock-dusting was being done at this mine and no water was being used at the face to allay dust….” (pp. 1-2)
Sources
National Fire Protection Association. Spreadsheet on Large Loss of Life Fires (as of Feb 2003). (Email attachment to B. W. Blanchard from Jacob Ratliff, NFPA Archivist/Taxonomy Librarian, 7-8-2013.)
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 Bureau of Mines. Report of Explosion, Duvin Mine, Duvin Coal Company, Providence, Webster County, Kentucky, July 14, 1939. Vincennes, IN: U.S. Bureau of Mines. Accessed 10-28-2024 at: https://usminedisasters.miningquiz.com/saxsewell/duvin_1939.pdf
United States Mine Rescue Association. Mine Disasters in the United States. “Duvin Coal Company, Owned by R. B. and F. V. Ruchman, Duvin Mine Explosion.” Accessed 10-28-2024 at: https://usminedisasters.miningquiz.com/saxsewell/duvin.htm
[1] Choking gas rich in carbon monoxide.