Interview with Frank Bourke,a child at the time of the Brunner Mine explosion. AUDIO.

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DescriptionSCROLL DOWN TO THE "EXTERNAL LINK" BELOW TO HEAR THE INTERVIEW.
A raw interview with Frank Bourke, who was a young child at the time of the Brunner Mine disaster, in which 67 men were killed in 1896.

It took five days to bring all the bodies out and all the families in the district were affected. His father was in the relief team which brought out the last man, Teddy Kent.
He believes the Brunner District never recovered from the disaster - men were afraid to go underground and the mining industry went into decline. Thousands attended the funeral and were brought in by a special free train service. Seven brass bands played in the funeral cortege which went from Brunner to Stillwater.
He recalls the welfare fund set up for the families of the dead men, which ran through until the 1950s when the last widow passed away.
He gives some details of the men on the relief teams (including his father) and the dangers they experienced with gas.
Several mine ponies were outside the mine on the morning of the disaster and bolted before the explosion and couldn't be controlled until their heads were covered. Frank Bourke believes the horses sensed there was danger in the mine.

Courtesy of Nga Taonga Sound & Vision Date of Photo26th March 1896Map^[1]External LinkExplosion at Brunner MineContributorNga Taonga Sound & Vision

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Location (city or town)BrunnerPersonFrank BourkeEventBrunner mine disaster

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Category TagDisaster

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Interview with Frank Bourke,a child at the time of the Brunner Mine explosion. AUDIO.

Editing is temporarily disabled