Alas it Seems Cruel

Peter Bell

The Mount Mulligan Coal Mine Disaster of 1921

Mount Mulligan is 100 km west of Cairns, an impressive natural landmark whose sandstone cliffs look as though a part of the Blue Mountains of New South Wales has somehow been transported 2000 km north. Underlying the mountain are coal deposits that supported a small mining town from 1914 until 1958. There is not much left of the township now. The best place to learn about Mount Mulligan’s history is the cemetery, where nearly a quarter of the little town’s population was buried in less than one week. On 19 September 1921 a massive coal dust explosion in the Mount Mulligan mine killed all 75, or perhaps 76, men and boys who were working underground.
This is the story of a horrible event in a remote and beautiful location 90 years ago. Of all peacetime jobs, underground mining is one of the most destructive of human life.