Early history of the undertaking—1879.ceeded with till the 18th October, 1879, at which time a considerable length of heading had been driven under the land from the three additional shafts which had been sunk, and the heading under the river had been so far advanced that only about 130 yards intervened between the heading being driven from the Gloucestershire shaft, known as the ‘Sea-Wall Shaft,’ and the main heading from the Old Pit on the Monmouthshire side.
None of these headings, up to the 17th October, had given any large quantity of water.
There were fixed at the Hill Pit two 15-inch plunger-pumps; at the Marsh Pit and the Sea-Wall Pit, each two 15-inch plunger-pumps. In the Old Pit there was an 18-inch plunger-pump worked by a 41-inch Cornish beam-engine; and in the Iron Pit adjoining were the two 26-inch plunger-pumps, each worked by a 50-inch Bull-engine.
But on the 18th October, 1879, in the heading then being driven westwards from the Old Pit, a large body of water was tapped, which, although efforts were made to dam it out by timber placed across the heading, poured into the workings in such a volume, that in twenty-four hours the whole of the workings which were in connection with the Old Pit were full up to the level of the tide-water in the river. Fortunately no lives were lost, the men being warned as they were changing shifts in the long heading, and being able to escape by the Iron Pit with only a wetting.
