ABANDONED 20TH CENTURY PENALLTA COLLIERY SOUTH WALES
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 ก.ย. 2024
- Come check out this abandoned Colliery in South Wales and the Number 2 up shaft with me CollidingPlanets. Music by PLUG N PLAY / @plugnplaymusic The Powell Duffryn Steam Coal Company maintained ownership of Penallta colliery until Nationalisation in 1947. The two shafts of Penallta colliery were sunk by the Powell Duffryn Steam Coal Company in 1905/6. The first coal was raised in 1909 from the upper six feet seam and subsequently from the lower nine and seven feet seams.
The number 1 shaft (downcast) and number 2 shaft (upcast) were 783 and 750 yards deep respectively. These shafts were subsequently extended to reach 800 yards in 1960 making it the last deep mine working in the Rhymney Valley.
Penallta colliery was maintained as one of the most advanced collieries using up-to-date coal cutting machinery. 1930 saw the production of 975,603 tons of coal and the European record for coal recovered in 1935. In the late 1940's one of the first power loaders to be used in British mines, the Meco-Moore Cutter Loader, was installed which helped produce the 500,000 tons of coal raised in 1954. The 1960 shaft extension scheme included electrification of the shaft winding engines. In the mid 1970's 700 men were producing 210,000 tons of coal yearly.
The 291 men employed in 1908 soon swelled to 1,920 in 1909. 1913 saw a slight reduction in the workforce to 1,281 men but in 1923, 2,395 men were employed which subsequently peaked at 3,208 men in 1931. 1947 saw a reduction to 1,934 men which reduced down to a mere 700 men in the 1970’s.
Post 1984/85
The miners marched back to the Penallta Colliery behind their lodge banner making an impressive return to work following the end of the strike.
Thirty two collieries were working in the South Wales coalfield following the 1984/85 miners strike. About a third of the remaining collieries in South Wales were then closed within a year of the end of the strike, the rest following shortly afterwards.
Penallta was one of the few pits in the coalfield that was chosen to undergo a programme of modernisation, with £3.5m being invested in rapid coal-winding skips and a new heavy-duty high-technology coalface.
In 1986 a major fire caused the closure of a coal face.
Closure
Penallta colliery was scheduled for closure by the British Coal Corporation (the statutory successor to the NCB) in November 1990. Despite this, by March 1991 the highest-ever productivity rate of 590,000 tonnes per annum of coal was being produced at Penallta. A brass band led the last shift of miners leaving Penallta colliery on Friday 1st November 1991. This marked the closure of the last deep mine working in the Rhymney Valley.
Such a shame these mines are left to decay in this way as they are a major part of our history in wales 🏴 🏴🏴🏴
My grandad and all his brothers worked in penallta colliery, also worked in Britannia colliery. He used to take me inside there after it shut down, he was always upset about it
Yes, I can understand your grandad being upset to see it now in its sad state. I can imagine the memories he would have had. Thanks for watching.
The heavy doors are the air lock because the shaft you are in is the upcast pit air drawn out of the mine, the other shaft is the downcast air drawn into the mine
I'm sure those lights would pull double duty in guarding against sudden coal dust combustion as well. Be a great set for a horror movie as well!
Just be thankful that shaft was capped and you had a decent torch. As you might have been headed for and early grave.
The anti spark measures are atex approved. Same process as used for oil refineries and explosive factories etc. Coal dust in the wrong concentration can give a fuel air explosion.
It's a shame to leave it in a mess make it a museum like big pit in Blaenavon. The shafts shouldnt be hollow they should be capped .Brilliant video by the way 👏👏👏
The Number 1 upcast and number 2 downcast shafts were deepened in the 1960's to 800 yards (2,400 ft) and they were the deepest in South Wales at the time. Not a place I would want to be haplessly wandering about in.
I'm surprised there so much left on this colliery site virtually all down our way we're gone flat by early 1990's buildings flat shafts filled Everything else scrapped
Fantastic Historic tour Wayne, Thanks for risking more than your neck to share it...take care!!
Thanks Steve. It was a great explore but bloody freezing. Wouldn't have like to work there in the winter.
Awesome place and video!!👍👍 great work!😄
Thanks Kappy, really appreciate it.
Collidingplanets exploring if you love going down the mines you need to go to Poland and do the salt mine because i been down there and it will blow your mind
I live here there are plans to preserve it and the pit head baths are going to be turned into flats, there is small track that runs under the road which is still visible , Also there was a Bucket system that took the slag to the tip Which is long gone now
Nice explore interesting place
Thank you...thanks for watching.
Such a shame they are just left to decay :(. Great video, thanks x
Yeah it is a shame, they should turn them into museums.
Looks awesome in there great video dude 👍
Thank you...thanks for watching.
The song near end is very sexy. Great video
Lol thanks Arnoud.
Very nice and interestin explore, loved watcing, i hope you checked those ladders b4 climbing on them because metal doesn't warn you b4 it breaks, it happened too me lol
Hi Rolf. No i forgot to check the ladders before climbing them but luckily enough it held my weight and theres a lot of weight to hold...lol.
interesting find thanks
Thank you.
Nice one Wayne. You did parts I didn’t do lol...I think I’ll have to go back
What part did you do then Sam?? I forgot to ask. Yes definitely have to go back. But in the summer for me though lol.
CollidingPlanets Exploring I did the Bath House and Engine House and filmed around the outside too
Awesome mate great vid and great info on history again Wayne
Thank you Ross :>)
Loving the vids, I've just found them and now you have a new sub. Keep on exploring
Thank you and thank you for subscribing.
interesting how they smashed the glass on the lift thing, yet main aim and like is smashing flourescent bulbs yet at 3.46 there seem to be some intact. I recon then tried to have the glass things away and broke one so smashed them all
4.22 the lamps are called bomb proof i belive used on oil rigs etc. so if there was an explosion they would still work. Very old now
Yes sadly they were smashed, perhaps they found it a bit hard to smash the others so left them. Yeah thats right...i thought they were bomb proof. Thank you.
Spent ages exploring here when I was a teenager. The old shower block was always creepy. Sadly most of the site is now a housing estate
Funnily enough, I've just come back from the Bath House. I will be putting that video up very soon. Thank you for watching.
Excellent. Really grate videos by the way. Very interesting.
Good video Wayne
Thanks Al, thanks for watching.
That's the fan shaft which would have gone up to the large fan in the power house which provided the air ventilation for the mine- your on the upcast shaft we which is sealed air tight -the other shaft is where fresh air went down
Thank you for letting me know, I didn't have much knowledge on this place.
You deserve more subs
Thankyou.
Good video I bet few stories been told down there not far from ower house
Yes, I can imagine. Thanks for watching.
that is not the mine shaft, that is the winding house. The old shaft is within the main building !
Awesome video mate. For some reason i just has to sub again, thats the second time I've lost you.
Thanks Jordan. Its happened to me a few times, i think its youtube, i think they take them off you for some reason.
Can you open that metal door that shows the drop
About 770 Yards deep
Deepened to 800, according to Wikipedia.
Be an idea when your making these not to say 'Round,down,out' or any words like that with that cewenty accent 🤣🤣🤣
This guy is out of breath by just walking a few metres lol