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The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 71
6. Accidents
6. Accidents.
As will be observed on reference to the following tables, coal-mining in New Zealand is subject to approximately the same proportion of accidents as occur in other countries, but owing to the limited number of men employed, the death-rate per thousand is very variable (Fig. 4, Plate III.). Many of the fatalities have occurred in small mines, where the owners have neither sufficient capital to provide proper appliances, nor in many cases the skill requisite for using them, were they at hand, Thus, in 1888, when there were four deaths, half this number took place in two mines, with a joint output of 30 tons.
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| Year. | Deaths par 1,000. |
|---|---|
| 1880 | 2.50 |
| 1881 | 1.04 |
| 1882 | 1.91 |
| 1883 | 1.60 |
| 1884 | 2.34 |
| 1885 | 2.06 |
| 1886 | 0.00 |
| 1887 | 2.66 |
| 1888 | 2.36 |
| 1889 | 2.37 |
| 1890 | 4.33 |
| 1891 | 2.36 |
| Average from 1879 inclusive (but not counting the Kaitangata explosion, which occurred prior to the enforcement of mining regulations) to the end of 1891 | 2.33 |
| Above— | Per Cent. | |
|---|---|---|
| Falls of ground | 1.23 | |
| Trucks | 1.85 | |
| Powder | 1.23 | |
| Miscellaneous | 5.55 | |
| 9.86 | ||
| Below— | ||
| Falls of roof and sides | 56.79 | |
| Trucks | 14.81 | |
| Explosions of powder | 4.32 | |
| Explosions of fire-damp | 4.94 | |
| Fulls of timber | 4.32 | |
| Miscellaneous | 1.23 | |
| 86.41 | ||
| Shafts— | ||
| Falls down | 0.62 | |
| In shafts | 3.08 | |
| 3.70 | ||
| 99.97 | ||
| Cause | Per Cent. |
|---|---|
| Explosion of gas | 4.54 |
| Fulls below ground | 68.18 |
| Trucks below | 9.08 |
| Shafts | 4.54 |
| Falls of gravel above ground | 9.08 |
| Asphyxiated in shafts | 4.54 |
| 99.96 |
Thus 77.26 per cent, of the total fatalities is due to falls of ground.
The average number of men employed per life lost from 1879 to 1891 (inclusive) was 4287, and the average tonnage raised per life lost was 149,524 tons.