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Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Co.
Gilberton Colliery Roof Fall

Gilberton, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania
August 8, 1930
No. Killed - 8

1930 Pennsylvania Annual Report  PDF Format
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7 Killed, 16 Hurt in Mine Shaft Collapse
Olean Evening Herald, New York
August 9, 1930

Pottsville, Pa., Aug. 9 -- (AP) -- Caught in a fall of timbers and debris in the Gilberton colliery of the Philadelphia & Reading Coal & Iron Company last night, seven miners were killed and 16 others injured.  Three of those who escaped with their lives were injured so severely they may not recover, hospital physicians said today.

Twenty-three men were working in the third level, about 1900 feet below the surface, when the accident occurred, due, investigators believed, to a sudden collapse of timbering.  The dead and severely injured were buried under tons of silt, coal and dirt.  The others escaped the full force of the avalanche.

The crash of breaking timbers and falling debris warned workers on the surface of the accident, and rescue crews set to work immediately to save their comrades.  Thirteen of those taken out required only first aid treatment.

The colliery, 10 miles from Pottsville, has been closed for several months and new rails were being placed in the slope preparatory to resuming operations Monday.


The deceased:
  • Patrick Birmingham, 48
  • William Burke, 45
  • Joseph Comeroskie, 20
  • Matt Koaher, 29
  • Mike Mellick, 38
  • George Nelobovage, 36
  • Anthony Strucka, 40
  • Charles Yorchas, 42
Injured:
  • Philip Berwick, 45
  • George Davis, 24
  • Edwin Philips, 27
Source: Pennsylvania Anthracite Mine Accidents, 1924-1932  PDF Format




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