Fire Fighting Competition

Immediate response, thats what the training was for  - this is a fire fighting capability at the pit. Hence the need to undertake ‘ in house ‘ training for the workforce. The culmination of this training was the annual fire fighting competition .   This comprised of different team and individual disciplines and competitions separately for surface and underground workmen.
Of these, there were to two to capture the attention ;- the surface fire trailer team competition  and the underground individual competition.  Timed and judged by Fire Brigade Officers the trailer, a powerful wheeled engine powered pump with associated suction and delivery baggings was swept forward by a 4 man team to a large water tank where 2 of the team rigged the suction baggings into the tank and connected them to the trailer.  Meanwhile the third man would have connected and ran a delivery bagging out along with a two way connector.  The fourth member throughout all this was priming and starting the pump to deliver water under full pressure along the first bagging.   The first 2 men now race out with further delivery baggings and nozzles at pace. The ends of the baggings are rammed into the connector and the two men then run the baggings out in front of the advancing water pressure in the hose and with nozzles connected aim at a given target.  The whole excercise had to be timed perfectly, and for the spectators (day shift colliers going home) the prospect of a missed bagging connection and the effect of the threshing uncontrolled bagging drenching anybody within 20 yards was too good to be missed - the spectators always got a treat.

The undergound individual competition completed on the pit top over a simulated course was one of the toughest examinations of stamina and technique. Each competitor had to lug an extinguisher through a series of obstacles in limited space. any error and you were out of it, again the competition was absorbing.  Entrants in all the competitions could expect either a soaking and certainly skinned knuckles to help maintain an effective fire fighting capability at the pit. Some of the competitors on the ‘60s were Brian Watts, Ronnie Beards, Dennis Rickwood, Alan Beards, Kenny Williams, Kenny Ball, Keith Walker, Micky Finn,  and many others

First Aid Practice

Practice, practice and practice again, words issued by many people but on this occasion by the avuncular Harry Fenwick Moore, Colliery Deputy, St Johns Ambulance Instructor to Savile Underofficials and its first aid competition teams.   Well he was right and all that practice and revision in the upstairs dancehall of the Miners Welfare on Sunday mornings ensured that most of those trained would be able to give assistance throughout their working life and would always be equipped to deal with calls for first aid in everyday situations.

His imparted knowledge of the St Johns ‘black book’ to our junior first aid team led us to winning 2 junior and 1 senior NCB competitions and also taking part in some very keen open competitions alongside any number of experts from all fields of industry.

The team made up of Tony Hargreaves, Alan Masterman, Freddie Worth and myself developed a unique system of preparation whilst waiting in isolation prior to taking part in the team examination.  We’d done the practice, completed the revision and now amidst the all knowing first aiders from Glass Houghton and Newmarket pits  and others, who were to a man reading up and cramming .........We played three card brag.

If you want to know how to give first aid to comminuted fractures, crush injuries, treat someone for epilepsy or insulin overdose, or if you need to know information regarding circulation of the blood -  just ask.

Many thanks Harry Moore and  Pat Mannion we have been using that knowledge which has been invaluable to this day.