The A block developments.
When the pit bottom area of Wistow Mine was established in August 1981 the main lateral headings to the production units started. North Return South West, South West Loco Road and South West Conveyor Road were driven to the West of the pit bottom. The headings were also driven to the East of the pit. These headings were called North Return North East, North East Loco Road, North East Conveyor Road and South Return North East. The headings were started with the intention of starting coal production in July 1983. The first group of faces were to be taken off the North Return South West. The first face to be developed was H01 AW, known as A1s. This unit was a 150 yard retreat face and started production on 4th July 1983. The face retreated 122 yards when water broke in on 23rd July. Pumping arrangements were quickly started to contain the massive water flows of over 90,000 litres/pm. This water was coming from the Basal Sands, with a fault on the face compounding the problem. It was quickly realised that due to the shallow depth of the workings in the Barnsley seam on A1s, at 330m, water bearing strata at 80m depth, and geological issues, the mine had to be re-planned. A1s face was abandoned in March 1984 after 460m of retreat. The longwall face of HO2 AW, known as A2s, commenced production in 1984 but had similar problems to A1s and was abandoned after 230m of retreat. It was replaced with single entry face H21 AW which could be developed quickly. The next four single entry faces inbye were H31 AW, H32 AW H41 AW and H42 AW all with a face length of 45m. These faces were developed side by side inside the width of the planned longwalls, with a coal panel left for support and were producing coal in 1985. A further single entry face, H02 BW was developed off the Main South Intake and South West Conveyor, also producing coal in 1985. Water was still an issue on the first 4 single entry faces although not on the scale of A1s and A2s. The next 14 single entry faces on A block were reduced in length to 38m and a reduction in seam section being cut. With a coal pillar of 55m left between faces they proved a success with the last face on A block H19AW starting production in 1988.
Single entry coal faces were a way of producing coal at Wistow Mine to minimise disruption to the overlying strata and by default the overlying water bearing strata. This system was used, with great success at Wistow Mine and produced millions of tonnes of coal.
I was lucky to have seen the single entry system of mining at South Kirkby Colliery in the early 1980s in the Newhill Seam. The system was developed with 5 faces trialled, each new face achieving improvements to the system. They were discontinued in 1985.
The single entry faces were developed, as the name suggests, using one roadway. At the inbye end of the heading a short roadway is opened to either left or right. This is, in effect a short face creating an L shaped heading. Once the stub heading was created the coal face equipment was installed in this stub heading. The chocks and A.F.C were installed like a standard faceline, but were butted up to the fast end of heading. The ventilation system was installed as part of the pan sides and the air was forced out at the fast end of the face thereby ventilating the face and the supply gate. Once the chocks and A.F.C were installed the drive motor was installed at the supply gate end of the face. The shearer was a shortened version of a standard single ended machine. The face was ventilated by fan like a standard heading but worked under exemption from the Mines Inspectorate, due to the ventilation of the fast end of the face. Methane levels were closely monitored with detection monitors installed at various points on the face to ensure air flow was maintained. The face had a flexible system of hoses and cables supplying the face which included a ventilation system to allow the face to retreat as required with constant air flow being maintained.
Selby Superpit 