On 13 February 1908 a blown-out shot initiated a methane explosion, resulting in a coal dust ignition which ripped through the Glencoe Colliery the following day. In the interval between the 2 explosions personnel from the mine and from neighbouring mines, as well as the Inspector of Mines, Mr William Muir, made various rescue attempts.
The first party could still hear the sound of escaping gas as they went underground and brought out several injured people. The men were fighting the fire with water when two coal dust ignitions occurred. The men escaped to the surface but returned underground a while later. While underground there were a further 3 explosions.
The Mine Manager, Mr George Sneddon the led a rescue party underground but they were driven back by the heat and the smoke. During the night 3 more rescue parties went underground. The first achieved little, the second found 30 dead men and managed to rescue 4 wounded men. The third rescue party, led by William Muir, the Inspector of Mines, had been underground for an hour when there was a further explosion which blasted the cage up the shaft, through the headgear and wrecked all the pulleys.
A sinking bucket manned by John Jones and William Dickson (both subsequently awarded the Edward Medal for bravery) was lowered down and six natives were rescued. They reported a serious fall close to the pit bottom and considerable damage.
After a consultation was held between the Commissioner of Mines, Mr. J. Gray, and the Managers of St. George’s, Navigation and Glencoe Collieries it was that decided that there was no hope of rescuing the entombed men and the effort was abandoned.
The following men were entombed:
- William Muir. Mines Inspector. Left a widow and one child.
- A.T. Ogilvie. Mine Captain. Left a widow and five children.
- Thomson. Assistant Mine Captain. Left a widow and seven children.
- Barclay. Night Overman. Left a widow and seven children.
- McCallum. Single.
- Thomas Hickman. Single.
- Tom Crossan. Single.
- Alexander Campbell. Single.
- Morris. Single.
- James Reid. Married with three children.
- Borland. Widower with three children.
- Lindsay. Married with no children.
The remains of Tom Crossan were eventually found not far from the bottom of the shaft and could only be identified by a letter in the pocket.
On 5 April 1909, at a special ceremony in Hattingspruit, medals for bravery were awarded by the Governor of Natal, Sir Mathew Nathan, to the men who had played a notable part in rescuing men as a result of the explosions the previous year.
the Edward Medal was awarded to Mr. T. Teasdale and John Jones. William Dickson received his medal in Johannesburg and a posthumous medal was to be sent to Mr. Muir’s widow in England.
The Edward Medal, a British civilian decoration, was instituted by royal warrant on 13 July 1907 to recognise acts of bravery of miners and quarrymen in endangering their lives to rescue their fellow workers.
Named in honor of King Edward VII, the original royal warrant was amended on 1 December 1909 to encompass acts of bravery by all industrial workers in factory accidents and disasters. This created two versions of the Edward Medal: Mines and Industry
In both cases the medal was divided in two grades: first class (silver) and second class (bronze). The cost of the Edward Medal (Mines) was borne by a fund, established by a group of philanthropists, including prominent mine owners, and not the state.
The Edward Medal (Mines) was awarded only 395 times (77 silver and 318 bronze) and the Edward Medal (Industry) only 188 times (25 silver and 163 bronze, of which only two were awarded to women.
Only posthumous awards were made after 1949, and the Edward Medal (Industry) (1st class) was not awarded after 1948.
The Edward Medal was discontinued in 1971, when surviving recipients of the Edward Medal, together with holders of the Albert Medal were invited to exchange their award for the George Cross. \
Nine recipients (2 silver, 7 bronze) elected not to exchange their medals.
