Former hard coal mine shaft in Saarbrücken-Burbach, sunk 1954 to serve the Alsbachfeld of Grube Luisenthal, scene of the catastrophic 1962 explosion killing 299 miners, and demolished after the closure of the Luisenthal complex.
The Alsbachschacht, sunk from 31 March 1954 in the Saarbrücken district of Burbach, was the outer Seilfahrtschacht of the Grube Luisenthal developed to access the rich Fettkohlenflöze of the Alsbachfeld. Probebohrungen had established the extent of the coal reserves in this part of the field. On 7 February 1962, at 07:50, an explosion in the Alsbachfeld killed 299 miners in the most severe mining disaster in the history of the Saarland.
The explosion, originating as a Grubengasabflammung in a poorly ventilated section of the Alsbachfeld, triggered a Schlagwetterexplosion and a series of Kohlenstaubexplosionen of devastating effect. Of 664 miners underground at the time, 433 were in the explosion area and only 61 remained uninjured. The shaft subsequently continued in service for Seilfahrt until the end of coal winding at the Luisenthal Standort on 23 December 1994.
The shaft was used for material transport and Seilfahrt until the final closure of Bergwerk Warndt/Luisenthal on 17 June 2005. The Alsbachschacht surface complex was demolished; unlike the Richardschächte, its headframe was not retained. A memorial to the 299 victims stands in the Althansstraße.
The Alsbachschacht was located in the Saarbrücken district of Burbach (Altenkessel), in the Alsbachtal. The decision to sink the shaft followed Probebohrungen that confirmed large coal reserves in the Alsbachfeld. Teufarbeiten commenced on 31 March 1954. The German Wikipedia article on the Grube Luisenthal notes that sinking began in 1954 after Probebohrungen had established große Kohlevorkommen in the Alsbachfeld. The shaft served as a Seilfahrtschacht for the Alsbachfeld, one of what was by the early 1960s the most productive Betriebsfeld of the Grube Luisenthal.
On 7 February 1962 at 07:50, a Schlagwetterexplosion occurred in the Alsbachfeld, at the level of the 4. Sohle. 664 miners were underground at the time; 433 of them were in the explosion zone. Only 61 remained uninjured. 299 Bergleute died. The explosion is the most severe mining disaster in the history of the Saarland. The sequence of events began as a Grubengasabflammung in a weakly ventilated crosscut, igniting a Schlagwetterexplosion that in turn triggered a series of Kohlenstaubexplosionen. The night before, between 23:40 and approximately 00:40, the methane drainage installation had been out of service for about an hour, though the Wettersteiger had given the all-clear after it restarted. The explosion was heard above ground in Saarbrücken-Burbach and Altenkessel; the shaft cover was blown upward and a black smoke column rose from the Alsbachschacht. The eyewitness account of Fahrsteiger Peters, standing at the entrance to the Alsbachschacht, is the primary surface source for the moment of the explosion. Emergency response was immediate; the Hauptrettungsstelle in Friedrichsthal and the Grubenwehr Luisenthal were alerted within minutes. As a consequence of this disaster, the Staubbindeverfahren and the use of Wassertrogsperren were introduced across German hard coal mining. The 299 dead were commemorated with a 7-metre-high stone statue of St. Barbara by the sculptor Lothar Meßner, unveiled on 26 September 1965 at the 1st Europäisches Knappentreffen, set against a wall of 299 hollow stones. In 1997 a replica miner's lamp was added to the memorial.
Coal production in the Alsbachfeld and at the Luisenthal standort continued after 1962. Coal winding at the Luisenthal Standort was ended on 23 December 1994. The Alsbachschacht continued to be used for Seilfahrt and materials transport until the final closure of the Bergwerk Warndt/Luisenthal Standort on 17 June 2005. The surface complex of the Alsbachschacht was subsequently demolished. Unlike the Richardschächte at the main Luisenthal complex, whose headframes were retained as listed monuments, the Alsbachschacht headframe was not preserved.