Strongman Survivor "Blown off his feet"

As the nation's attention is focused on the fate of the 29 missing at Pike River Mine, John Maslin meets a Wanganui man who has first-hand experience of underground explosions,including the fatal Strongman blast
Just after 10am on January 19, 1967, an explosion blew through the section of the Strongman mine known as Green's No2 Rise.
In seconds the fireball from the explosion flashed through the section, killing 19 of the 240 men who were working in the West Coast mine at the time.
Within a matter of hours, rescue teams wearing breathing apparatus had recovered most of the bodies. Two remained entombed in the mine, while the others were buried in a mass grave in Greymouth.
Wanganui man Alex Gray was 44 at the time. He had been working for the Mines Department but had actually finished with the mining industry, he and his wife deciding on a new future in Christchurch.
But while waiting for his move to be finalised, he took on a temporary job as an underground fitter at Strongman.
What happened in 1967 replicated a similar explosion in a privately-owned mine up 10 Mile Creek, where a teenage Mr Gray was working as an apprentice fitter.
He recalled being sent with a engineering crew to 10 Mile Creek to work on a ventilation system. Gas was also a problem in that pit.
``The explosion there blew part of the ventilation system right across the gully from the mine opening,'' he said.
He helped carry heavy breathing apparatus up the hill for the rescue crews. It was his first experience with an explosion and the rescue teams.
``In those days, they didn't have fancy ways of checking for gas. They put their gear on and went in _ and they didn't wait, either. All they had was a canary. If the canary lived, there was no gas. If it died, they got out of there.''
The day of the Strongman explosion, Mr Gray, now 87, was walking away from Green's No2 Rise to an area of the mine where coal hoppers from various sections were gathered before being hauled out of the mine.
``There was this chap, a neighbour of mine in Greymouth, sitting there having his lunch and he asked me to stay and have a yarn. I said I had to go somewhere else.
``I kept walking and was almost out when ... bang! The force of the explosion didn't knock me over or hurt me, but it blew me off my feet,'' he said.
``The man I'd spoken to only moments before was dead. So were all the others in that section.''
Mr Gray made it out, the only survivor of the explosion that tore through Greens' No2 Rise.
``One of the senior staff came down and asked me to stay behind to help him winch clear some of the damaged coal boxes and other gear, clearing things away before the rescue teams arrived.''
``I met the rescuers coming into the mine, complete with their breathing gear and their canary. There was no delay. They just went straight in.''
He showered, got dressed, clocked out and waited to get a ride back to Greymouth. By the time he got to town, everyone knew there had been an explosion, but Mr Gray's wife had no idea if her husband had survived or not.
This is a story he and his wife have talked about on many occasions, but Mr Gray has never spoken to anyone else about what happened on January 19, 1967 _ how he flirted with death and how, but for a call to go to another section of the Strongman, he would have been among the dead.
Did those events change his mind about mining?
``Not really. My father was a miner from Scotland, and I often went to the mines when he had to test for gases before the shifts arrived on Monday morning. Mining was in our blood.''
He was well aware of the risks in the industry in those days, but he did not hesitate when asked to stay and help after the explosion at Strongman.
``The rescue teams that came in, they knew the risks, but this is something you grew up with.''