Barry Kent is one of the lucky ones. He was badly burnt during the Bulli Mine disaster of 1965 but feels fortunate to have escaped the inferno which claimed the lives of four brave souls.
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Now living in Queensland, Mr Kent will be in Bulli on November 9 for a memorial service commemorating the 50th anniversary of the disaster.
The underground fire at Bulli Mine on Wednesday, November 9, 1965 took the lives of miners Fred Hunt, Harry Smith, Jack Murray and Bob Stewart.
Barry Swan, a former Mineworkers Federation national secretary, said there were seven miners behind the point of ignition when the fire started.
‘’From all reports two got out before the fire got out of control and started yelling out for help,’’ Mr Swan said.
‘’Barry Kent, who was an electrician, then managed to escape but the fire was very fierce and he suffered some bad burns.
‘’We are happy that he has accepted our invitation to attend the memorial in remembrance of the four lives lost on that fateful day.’’
Mr Swan, who will MC the ceremony at the Bulli Mine Disaster Memorial, is also pleased some of those ‘’brave people’’ who attempted to save the miners, will also attend.
Family members and friends of those who lost their lives are also slated to attend.
The disaster in 1965 came almost 80 years after 81 men and boys lost their lives in an underground explosion at the Bulli Mine.
The March 23, 1887 disaster remains the second largest loss of life to an Australian industrial incident.
In 1890 a memorial to the lives lost in that disaster was erected in Park Road, Bulli.
There was some restoration work in 1994 but the monument has required ongoing care and maintenance by local residents.
The Bulli Disaster Memorial Committee (BMDC) formed earlier this year and its efforts led to a further restoration of the memorial.
Alan Potter, Andy Hubcher and Gary Bromley are part of the group which developed the strategy to restore the Bulli Mine Disaster Memorial to ‘’a standard befitting a heritage listed monument of historic importance to the nation and the Illawarra region’’.
The Mineworkers Trust and the South and Western CFMEU Mining Division came to the party and helped financially with the project.
The commemoration service at the Bulli Mine Disaster Memorial on Monday, November 9 starts at 12.30pm.
After the service guests will head to St Augustine’s Church, where Lamplighters Male Choir will perform.
