HOMEPAGE PERSONAL PROFILE HISTORICAL REVIEW HOWEBRIDGE MRS BOOTHSTOWN MRS PURPOSE OF A MRS MOBILE WINDING ENGINE AMPUTATION KIT OFFICERS AND STAFF SELECTION OF RESCUEMEN BREATHING APP PRIME FEATURES OF BA GENERAL CONDUCT OXYGEN RESUSCITATORS HEAT AND HUMIDITY RESCUE COMMS CANARIES AND LAMPS SELF RESCUERS SEFA BREATHING APPARATUS PROTO BREATHING APPARATUS AERORLOX BREATHING APPARATUS SALVUS BREATHING APPARATUS SAVOX BREATHING APPARATUS MINOX BREATHING APPARATUS ANTIPOYS TUBE APPARATUS

The Lancashire Mines Rescue Service THE EMERGENCY MOBILE WINDING ENGINE. Photograph shows students from Wigan Mining College who were attending the first Mines Rescue Station Officer's Course, in 1958. The students had witnessed a demonstration with the Boothstown Mobile Winding Engine, just outside the winder's garage to the rear of the Station. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE BOOTHSTOWN MOBILE WINDING ENGINE. Since 1940, Mines Rescue Stations have provided specialist emergency cover for shaft incidents in the form of mobile winding engines. Prior to this date, colliery personnel were left to their own devices to deal with this type of contingency. In early 1939, when there was an increasing possibility of a war with Germany, it was accepted that there would be a new menace to the British mainland on a scale, never experienced in any previous conflict. This was the aerial threat from bombing raids by German aircraft. It was recognised, that amongst other things, bombing raids could seriously damage colliery winding engines and headgear structures over the shafts, rendering them incapable of being operated. In this event, there could be several hundred men trapped below ground. Bearing in mind, there were many shafts up 1,000 yards in depth, ladder ways were not a practical consideration. The Lancashire and Cheshire Coal Owners acknowledged this potential danger and commissioned Messrs. Walker Bros, a mining engineering firm of Wigan, to design a mobile winding engine that could be transported to every colliery in the area and be equipped to wind men from the deepest shaft. The unit was delivered to the Boothstown Rescue Station in early 1940. The Mobile Winding Engine itself, was 24 tons in weight and designed to be towed, on the road by another vehicle. The pneumatic road wheels could be removed to reveal railway wagon wheels on the same axle. These wagon wheels were obviously of the same guage as the colliery rail track, which would be used if approach to a particular shaft, in this way, was more expedient. The Winder had a 4ft. diameter, cast steel, parallel drum with 1,250 yards of 5/8” diameter locked coil, steel rope. The initial source of motive power was a 205 h.p. diesel engine manufactured by Messrs Gardners of Patricroft, Eccles. The winding equipment was fitted with all the usual safety and warning devices that were present on the larger, static, winding engines at the collieries. These included ‘Overspeed’; ‘Overwind’ and ‘Slow Banking’ devices. There were also a Depth Indicator and an Electronic Signalling System. The towing vehicle carried all the essential ancillary equipment, securely stowed on the flat base, behind the cab. This equipment included two large, steel "Hoppits", the larger of which,would hold 8 men and the smaller, would hold 4 men. Each hoppit had it's own set of chains and distribution plate. When rigged up for winding, the distibution plate would be attached to an "Ormerod Detaching Hook" that would make he final connection with the steel winding rope. The was also a temporary derrick, complete with a single pulley and a pair of pedestals, which could be erected over an open shaft at a disused colliery. A number of the Members of the Permanent Corps were trained to transport the Mobile Winder from the Rescue Station and set it up for winding at the top of any affected shaft. A small number of existing, colliery winding enginemen at each colliery, were selected and trained to then take over and carry out the winding procedure. Every six months, these selected winding enginemen were given refresher training and instruction, both at the Rescue Station and at a selected disused collieries. There were one or two. closed and unproductive colliery sites that maintained an open shaft, that lent itself to this type of training in the area. The old Ashton's Field Colliery at Walkden, about 2 miles from the Rescue Station was used in most cases. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------