Before we explain our current situation, its important to understand the historic legacy mines in our area. With the great help of the Royal Commission into Collieries document, I will be quoting word for word abstracts. Later, I will use current day reports and evidence to match with historical data.

The Royal Royal Commission into Collieries 1886 was initiated because of the Lithgow Valley and Ferndale Colliery disasters and a near disaster at Maryville Colliery in 1886. With regards to Ferndale Colliery (the major colliery in the Tighes Hill region), on the 18th March 1886 a miner drowned and “water had flooded the mining plant and works as well as adjacent small collieries and were irretrievably lost”.

Below from the report;

“At the present moment the summit and sides of this ridge present a scene of confusion, caused by innumerable pit-falls, denoting where attempts have been made to remove the small-sized pillars of coal that supported the roof.

The Maitland Road crosses the southern margin of Tighe’s Hill. Under it the coal-seam measures 16 feet in thickness, and is found under the surface at a similar depth.
The coal has been worked from under this road, but the thin pillars have not been removed, and these at present form its sole support. Towards the west (opposite Bevan’s and Spennymoor* ) the coal crops out under the creek, and has been worked to within a few feet of its tidal waters.

The pillars that maintained the integrity of the surface have subsequently been removed, and the water has obtained access to the workings, and rises and falls every tide.”

* Spennymoor is the colliery that Professor Fityus referred to in his Legacy Mines report 2020 as being the workings underneath our properties.

Maitland Road Mining

Urgent stablization was required to secure the telegraph pole in front of our property at Maitland Road Mayfield NSW.

Mine water is flowing directly underneath the road, under the footpath, and then directly into our lower warehouse permanently flooding us.

Authorities have stated they believe its from old mine workings. Historic records confirm this – miners back in the 1880s were supposed to leave barriers of coal/soil between various mines, however, they failed to do so resulting in full connectivity of all the mines in the area. Also, mining was to have stopped before Maitland Road however records suggest that mines did go beneath the main arterial road.

Mine water and the deteriorating legacy mine network has caused damage to Maitland Road, the footpath, to the telegraph pole, and permanently flooding our building.

NSW Government, Mine Subsidence Advisory, Legacy Mines, Newcastle Council and other agencies have been made aware of the issues for over 14 years.

Even when sink holes (some 2-3 metres in diameter) open along Maitland Road it takes an incredible amount of time to get the problems solved. The last hole took more than 7 months for City of Newcastle to action the repair – letters from us to Newcastle Council including directly to the Lord Mayor and councillors, request from Mine Subsidence Advisory and request from Legacy Mines all failed for City of Newcastle to act. If was only when the local MP Tim Crakanthorp wrote to Newcastle Council that the hole was repaired.

Telegraph Pole Repair Street Level A

Telegraph Pole Repair Street Level

Telegraph Pole Repair

It started as “seepage” in our warehouse in 2008, which then becomes 20,000,000 litres per year. This building is permanently flooded. Water then starts spreading onto our neighbouring properties where in 2019 water starts “seeping” into our office.

After a little time, water was now running permanently through our office brick cavities, internal walls, through concrete slab and out of the wall facing Maitland Road.

Now, this building is permanently flooded. “Seepage” has starting with our neighbours. You know how this finishes…… The NSW Government and City of Newcastle have completely ignored this problem.

It is mine water that is flowing from abandoned mines (its taken us years to find this information due to the lack of support and secrecy of authorities). Mine Subsidence Advisory in their report rejected helping us.

Their inspector then said; “The seam outcrops below the subfloor likely carrying water from nearby abandoned workings below Maitland Road”

This is how NSW Government & City of Newcastle Council NSW destroy a business.