I suggest that improving the ventilation in the mine would stop the explosions caused by the build up of gases. At the Washington mine, there are clear signs of bad management because workers were still allowed to use candles until the explosion took place.

At the Killington mine, poor ventilation resulted in a few small fires. Therefore, the managers insisted on the use of safety lamps instead of candles. Here, the explosion resulted from miners not sticking to the rules.

In both mines it would be possible to double the amount of ventilation. The air shafts could be improved. Both mines were capable of producing a ventilating current of nearly 30,000 cubic feet per minute.