Pit Workers in the Old Days #11 (6) (Accident Which Befell Officers of the Pit)
1958 - 1963

Mukashi no Yamabito #11 (6) (Saiko Kanbu no Jiko)
[Pit Workers in the Old Days #11 (6) (Accident Which Befell Officers of the Pit)]
21.1 x 30.2 cm Ink Painting

On July 7, 1918, two underground carpenters were working in the passage to the entrance of the return air way of their pit. (There was a fan for this return air way about a hundred meters away to the east of the timber yard in front of today's Kamimio Station.) The inclination of this passage was about 35 degrees and was about 30 meters long. The entrance of the return air way had a double-entry door. While the carpenters were repairing the lower entry, they noticed someone pulling the #8 annealing wire attached to it from below. The two of them suspiciously descended the passage to find Mr. Suzuki lying and breathing faintly. They were astonished and reported this fact to their surface boss. The pit was thrown into utter confusion. Since Mr. Suzuki said in a hazy state that Mr. Kumai was still underground, several rescuers immediately descended the return air way. However, they could not find the victim because the slope was too hot to search for him. Later, they finally discovered and recovered the remains of Mr. Kumai after closing the steam valve.
Mr. Kumai's body looked very tragic. All parts of his exposed skin including those of his face and hands were hideously scalded. His skin was peeled off and his body reddened and swollen. The scalded skin hanging from his body had turned white and was swollen. Everyone in the pit wept over his misfortune.
The victims were found as soon as possible due to the two carpenters. However, it was highly regrettable that the lives of both executives of the pit were lost.

Additional Notes
The #8 annealing wire was attached to the small door built in the bottom part of the lower entry of the double-entry door so that miners could open the small door by pulling the wire when they reached the door from below.

Words in the Inset
nishi: west
kita: north
honsen-oroshi: main slope
migi mataoroshi: right diagonal slope
tekkan haikioroshi: return air way with steel pipes
sempuki: fan
nihyaku metoru: 200 meters
ni metoru joge: undercrossing with a 2-meter gap
koko yori ue gojudo yo: The temperature was more than 50 degrees above this point.
Suzuki Shi: the place where Mr. Suzuki was found
Kumai Shi: the place where Mr. Kumai's body was found

Production Year Written beside the Title
Showa Sanju Gonen: (Painted in )1960


Translation Assisted by Mr. Nathan Johndro

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