restore ventilation. Dymond and Brown, who were supervising operations, realised before the end of the first day that all the remaining men underground must be dead and from midnight underground operations were run down. At 1.30 am most of the men below ground came up due to a false alarm and Minto went with John Smith (the mining engineer from Lundhill Colliery) below to investigate. Minto and Smith found Tewart who gave them directions to Jeffcock's location at the end of the stone drift. Jeffcock, Minto, and Smith walked up the engine level checking stoppings. Part way up they encountered a strong blower of chokedamp (mainly carbon dioxide and nitrogen) which accounted for much of the foul air. Minto, Jeffcock, and several others remained in the mine and worked through the night into the next morning. Recovery attempts, day two Just after 5:00 am Minto ascended to select and organise a party of about a hundred men to recover bodies. Jeffcock remained below trying to re-establish effective ventilation. The rescue-recovery party of about seventy men were led by Smith, Tewart, William Sugden, deputy steward, Siddons, and two firemen Thomas Madin and William Stevenson. The first explosion occurred around 8:30 am. Matthew Hague (alternately Haigh), a night deputy, was underground with Sugden in charge of a party of men about from the pit bottom. The air stream rapidly changed direction, a sure sign of an explosion and the men rushed to the pit bottom to be lifted out, though Sugden remained behind as he felt it his duty. At the inquest Hague described it: "I found the air turned upon us, and we 'revolted' again. That is, we were sucked backwards and forwards in consequence of the explosion. I knew this, for I am one of the survivors of the explosion twenty years ago." The first cage came up with sixteen men crammed in it (the cage was normally meant to carry six). Those waiting at the pit bottom took shelter and even bid each other farewell as they anxiously waited for the cage to return. In the midst of this, Minto descended to see what was going on. He asked Tewart where Jeffcock and Smith (of Lundhill) were and, after a brief search, spent five minutes talking with Tewart, Barker, and Siddons. He regained the surface at ten to nine to confer with the engineers. Jeffcock had earlier sent word