ECS delivers mineshaft cover to help secure Daw Mill Colliery Site

Following an underground fire, the Daw Mill colliery was closed in March 2013. Since then work has been underway to put the fire out and make the site safe, while also removing all of the above ground structures. A major part of this work has involved filling in the 2 mineshafts, which required a specially engineered cover plate to be constructed. This work has been undertaken by ECS Engineering Services in conjunction with JMC on behalf of the Coal Authority.
Under normal conditions, a mineshaft would be decommissioned by removing all the underground equipment in a controlled manner using carefully scheduled plans. However, in this case the mine had to be evacuated as soon as the fire broke out and it has not been safe for anyone to re-enter since. As a result, a different approach has been devised, whereby the operation to seal the two shafts is completed purely from work carried out on the surface.
Daw Mill mined a five metre thick seam of coal known as the Warwickshire Thick, with 2 shafts extending down to approximately 550m along with an inclined drift, which was used to convey the coal out of the mine. Now that the mine has been closed, the initial priorities are to extinguish the underground fire by cutting off the air supply and isolating the mine water from the local aquifer.
In fact, the two tasks will be accomplished simultaneously since the mineshafts will need to be closed to remove the oxygen supply to the fire and in doing so material that is used to fill the mineshafts will include two carefully positioned clay plugs that will keep the mine water separate from the aquifer. The specifications for the various materials to be used and location of the clay plugs has been approved by the Environment Agency, which has a responsibility for the local water supplies...
Editor Contact
DMA Europa Ltd. :
Chris Holman
Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]
Web: www.dmaeuropa.com
Email: [e-mail]
Company Contact
ECS Engineering Services Ltd :
Jamie Wesley, Operations Manager
Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]
Web: www.ecsengineeringservices.com
Email: [e-mail]
To read full story please follow this link: ow.ly/tYUsT

[@gb5uq]

No sooner had the entire site been leveled and Daw Mill lost for ever it is announced the fire is out. Go figure.

[@marcnews75]

It was all a big lie to steal jobs and kill the industry for good

[@seeul8rwaynekerr]

So the UK's Centralia? A fire raging underground.

[@johnmelling9950]

I still dont understand what the problem was. Theres ropes running down the shaft so it cant be filled? So if the ropes are a problem, why not just cut them at the top and let them fall down the shaft and then drop the stone in on top of them?

[@jackcro8825]

I agree because the ropes will be damaged anyway and required changing so agree just cut them and let them fall inside.

[@karensmith8953]

😅just wait for Maggie she'll sort it all out

[@jamesford4750]

This coal mine was loosing millions of pounds it needed closing down