David Jenkins had worked at Garnant Colliery for about 10 years by the time of the accident. He was approximately 53 years old. He had been appointed as banksman by the manager who was at Garnant Colliery before John Hay, when work started at the colliery in 1874.
At the time of the 1881 census, David was living at Prospect Place. This group of houses started near New Bethel Chapel and extended past where the Old Workmens Hall now stands, on the A474, Cwmamman Road, Garnant.
Also listed there was his wife, Anne aged 40 and his four children. The names and ages of his children were listed as follows:
I have heard, but not confirmed, that Evan Jenkins became a solicitor who was renown for helping ordinary folk with legal problems and with completing forms etc. He apparently lived at the Twyn in Garnant.
After the prosecution case brought against Thomas Michael had failed, the Garnant Colliery Company brought a case against David Jenkins, for breaking one of the special rules of the colliery, by letting more than 8 men go down in the cage at a time. It was acknowledged in court, that someone else had momentarily undertaken David Jenkins' duty and that he could not see how many men had entered the cage, due to there being obstacles in the way. The colliery company wished to make an example of him to show that any breaking of the rules would not go unnoticed and to show that they had adopted the special rules. Despite the circumstances, for reasons that we shall never know, David Jenkins admitted liability and he was fined £19 8s.
Whether the case against David Jenkins was justified is a matter of opinion. It may, however, seem somewhat hypocritical of the Garnant Colliery Company, to have brought the case against David Jenkins for the reasons that they gave in court. The Inspector of Mines, questioned whether John Hay, the colliery manager, broke one of the special rules himself, by not visiting the site daily as should have been the case. No prosecution, however, was brought against the manager or any other official.
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