Wakefield Museums and Castles

This stretcher was used by the Mines Rescue Service to retrieve injured miners.

Coal mining was very dangerous. Common risks included cave-ins, fires, floods, explosions and poisonous gases. There were a lot of deadly disasters in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

In 1886 an explosion and fire at Altofts Colliery killed 22. In 1901 the mine opened a rescue training centre with an underground gallery to practise in. Other mine owners also improved rescue preparations. But not all mine owners were willing to pay for rescue training and services.  

In 1910 a fire at Whitehaven in Cumbria killed 122. The government passed a Mines Act forcing owners to create rescue services.

The Mines Rescue Centre at Ings Road in Wakefield opened in 1916. It had a few permanent staff and could call on extra trained volunteers from the local mines.

Wakefield was best known as the place where the Riley Rocking Stretcher was invented. This was a special stretcher that could be swung up and down to help injured men breathe. 

By 1920 there were 43 rescue centres across the country. Despite this, nearly 1300 men died in accidents in 1923 alone.