In which small Welsh village were over 100 children killed by a coal mine slag heap in 1966?
"the mine workings was piled on the hills close to the village which grew nearby. Tipping went on until the 1960s. Although nationalised, the National Coal Board failed to appreciate the danger they had created. In October 1966, heavy rain made the giant coal tip unstable, resulting in the Aberfan disaster. The recent dumping of small particles of coal and ash known as 'tailings' seems to have been partly responsible. A black wave tore downhill across the Glamorganshire Canal and swept away houses on its path towards the village school. 114 children and 28 adults were killed. The Rhondda Valleys"
"includes the subsidiary summits of Twyn Brynbychan and Twyn Sych. To the northwest lies Mynydd Aberdâr. Much of the hill has been planted with coniferous forest. Its flanks are heavily scarred by mining. The village of Aberfan sits at the foot of its eastern slopes, the scene of a tragedy on 21 October 1966 when a coal tip above the village slipped and engulfed the village school killing 144 people of whom 116 were children. The entire hill is composed of sandstones and mudstones dating from the Carboniferous Period. There are also numerous coal seams within the sequence, most of"
"Canal. Aberfan has two primary schools: Ynysowen Primary School adjacent to the Grove Field; and Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Rhyd y Grug, which has moved to the previously occupied Ynysowen Primary School building. Aberfan Aberfan () is a former coal mining village in South Wales, in the Taff Valley south of the town of Merthyr Tydfil. On 21 October 1966, it became known for the Aberfan disaster, when a colliery spoil tip collapsed into homes and a school, killing 116 children and 28 adults. For many years, millions of cubic metres of excavated mining debris from the colliery were deposited on"
"Aberfan Aberfan () is a former coal mining village in South Wales, in the Taff Valley south of the town of Merthyr Tydfil. On 21 October 1966, it became known for the Aberfan disaster, when a colliery spoil tip collapsed into homes and a school, killing 116 children and 28 adults. For many years, millions of cubic metres of excavated mining debris from the colliery were deposited on the side of Mynydd Merthyr, directly above the village of Aberfan on the opposite side of the valley. Huge piles, or ""tips"", of loose rock and mining spoil had been built up"
"availability of oil. From 15,000 miners in 1947, Rhondda had just a single pit within the valleys producing coal in 1984, located at Maerdy. In 1966, the village of Aberfan in the Taff valley suffered one of the worst disasters in Welsh history. A mine waste tip on the top of the mountain, which had been developed over a spring, slid down the valley side and destroyed the village junior school, killing 144 people, 116 of them children. In 1979, Margaret Thatcher became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Her policies of free market economics soon clashed with the loss-making,"
"Aberfan disaster The Aberfan disaster was the catastrophic collapse of a colliery spoil tip at around 9:15 am on 21 October 1966. The tip had been created on a mountain slope above the Welsh village of Aberfan, near Merthyr Tydfil and overlaid a natural spring. A period of heavy rain led to a build-up of water within the tip which caused it to suddenly slide downhill as a slurry, killing 116 children and 28 adults as it engulfed the local junior school and other buildings. The tip was the responsibility of the National Coal Board (NCB), and the subsequent inquiry"
"Prince of Wales colliery in Abercarn exploded in 1878 causing 268 deaths. The Llanerch Colliery in Abersychan exploded in 1890 causing 176 deaths. The Albion Colliery in Cilfynydd exploded in 1894 causing 276 deaths. In the 20th century there were numerous further fatal accidents The Universal Colliery in Senghenydd had Britain's most fatal accident when it exploded in 1913 killing 431. In 1966, 116 children and 28 adults were killed in Aberfan when a coal spoil tip collapsed onto them. On 15 September 2011, seven miners were working a narrow seam at the Gleision Colliery drift mine in the Tawe"
"My Valley"", describes the social and environmental effects of coal mining in Wales at the turn of the 20th century. The local mine's spoil tip, which he calls a slag heap, is the central figure of devastation. Eventually the pile overtakes the entire valley and crushes Huw Morgan's house: The slagheap is moving again. I can hear it whispering to itself, and as it whispers, the walls of this brave little house are girding themselves to withstand the assault. For months, more that I ever thought it would have the courage to withstand, that great mound has borne down upon"
"Aberfan Disaster Tribunal The Tribunal of Inquiry into the Aberfan Disaster (the Aberfan Disaster Tribunal), chaired by Lord Justice Edmund Davies, was established in 1966 to inquire into the causes of and circumstances of the Aberfan disaster. The report of the tribunal placed the blame for the disaster on the National Coal Board, naming nine of its staff as having some degree of responsibility. On 21 October 1966 a colliery spoil tip on a hill above the Welsh village of Aberfan near Merthyr Tydfil collapsed, killing 116 children and 28 adults. More than 1.4 million cubic feet (40,000 cu metres)"
"Senghenydd Colliery Disaster which claimed 439 lives in the South Wales coalfield in 1913. The Oaks disaster remains the worst in an English coalfield. A volunteer research project by the Dearne Valley Landscape Partnership in 2016 produced a list of 383 names although not all were verified as died in the disaster. The ages of those killed ranges from 10 to 67. Oaks explosion The Oaks explosion on 12 December 1866 killed 361 miners and rescuers at the Oaks Colliery at Hoyle Mill near Stairfoot in Barnsley, West Riding of Yorkshire. The disaster happened when a series of explosions caused"
"lessons which are still of profound relevance today. They touch on issues of public accountability, responsibility, competence and transparency. Aberfan disaster The Aberfan disaster was the catastrophic collapse of a colliery spoil tip at around 9:15 am on 21 October 1966. The tip had been created on a mountain slope above the Welsh village of Aberfan, near Merthyr Tydfil and overlaid a natural spring. A period of heavy rain led to a build-up of water within the tip which caused it to suddenly slide downhill as a slurry, killing 116 children and 28 adults as it engulfed the local junior"
"Welsh-speaking areas. The period following the Second World War saw a decline in several of the traditional industries, in particular the coal industry. The numbers employed in the South Wales coalfield, which at its peak around 1913 employed over 250,000 men, fell to around 75,000 in the mid 1960s and 30,000 in 1979. This period also saw the Aberfan disaster in 1966, when a tip of coal slurry slid down to engulf a school with 144 dead, most of them children. By the early 1990s there was only one deep pit still working in Wales. There was a similar decline"
"help describe the life of the local miners and the social history of the area. Coal mining in Whitehaven dates back to the thirteenth century when the monks from St Bees Abbey supervised the opening of coal mines at Arrowthwaite. This long history ended abruptly in March 1986, when Haig Colliery, Cumbria's last deep coal mine, finally closed. During this time, the gassy nature of the mines caused many violent explosions. Over 1200 men, women, and children were killed in the Whitehaven pits while mining coal in workings up to four miles out beneath the Solway Firth. Haig itself had"
"over the years to form large spoil tips. Shortly after 9:00 am on Friday 21 October 1966 one of these tips collapsed, sending thousands of tons of semi-liquid waste hurtling towards Aberfan. The point of impact was Pantglas Junior School, where morning lessons were beginning. The school was half buried; inside, 109 children and 5 teachers were killed. A further 7 children and 23 adults lost their lives outside the school, in the streets or adjoining houses. In the immediate aftermath, Davies visited and consoled the bereaved families in Aberfan, and the following day he led a party which included"
"150,000 cubic metres of water-saturated debris broke away and flowed downhill at high speed. It smashed into the village of Aberfan and the northern side of the Pantglas Junior School. In total, 116 children and 28 adults were killed. The Coventry Playground was built in 1972 on the site of the old Merthyr Vale School, with the monies collected by the people of Coventry. The playground was officially opened by the mayor of Coventry. Mount View, which translates from English to Welsh as ""Trem Y Mynydd"" is a small village within Merthyr Vale, Located at the bottom of Mount Pleasant"
"The nearest secondary school is Dwr y Felin Comprehensive. Many village children also attend the Welsh-language secondary Ysgol Gyfun at Ystalyfera and the Welsh-language Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Castell-nedd. There has only ever been one crime in Bryncoch. Bryncoch was once the principal site of the Main Colliery Company, an important coal mining employer in the area up until 1928. This was the scene of a major disaster on 6th April 1859, when 26 men and boys were drowned by an inflow of water, as reported in The Cambrian newspaper. The philanthropist Howel Gwyn MP lived, from 1854, at the now"
"train at Worksop on 22 November 1913. This was almost a year before his assassination, which triggered off the First World War. The Archduke narrowly avoided being killed in a freak hunting accident during his stay. The Welbeck Colliery operated from 1912 to 2011, with a maximum of 1,400 miners producing 1.5 million tons per year. It was lastly operated by UK Coal after the dissolution of the National Coal Board. In 2010 UK Coal were fined £1.2 million of safety breaches at Welbeck Colliery that resulted in the death of a worker. Welbeck Welbeck is a village in Nottinghamshire,"
"into the disaster; Davies had been born and schooled in the nearby village of Mountain Ash. A coroner's inquest was opened on 24 October to give the causes of death for 30 of the children located. One man who lost his wife and two sons called out when he heard their names mentioned: ""No, sir—buried alive by the National Coal Board""; one woman shouted that the NCB had ""killed our children"". The first funerals, for five of the children, took place the following day. A mass funeral for 81 children and one woman took place at Bryntaf Cemetery in Aberfan"
"(Rhondda Fach and Rhondda Fawr) housed around 3,000 people in 1860 but by 1910 the population had soared to 160,000. The Rhondda had become the heart of a massive South Wales coal industry. Mining accidents below ground were common and in 1896 fifty-seven men and boys were killed in a gas explosion at the Tylorstown Colliery. An enquiry found that the pit involved had not been properly inspected over the previous 15 months. Ebbw Vale, the valley of the Ebbw River which stretches from the town of Ebbw Vale to Newport, includes the mining towns and villages of Newbridge, Risca,"
"mostly Welsh, into the area. There were now 300 men and boys employed in the production of coal. ""The 1922 Breaker #2 collapse"" On April 1, 1916 there was a mine collapse at Shaft #2 that most notably killed 7 Welsh mining-boys between the ages of 6 and 11. This event was the basis for the song ""Crugybar o frynian caersalem"" performed by the Wilkes-Barre Quartet in 1922, which commemorates the event, as the boys were ""fresh off the boat"" from the Salem's Hills area of Northeast Wales. Coal mining continued until The Great Depression hit this town hard, as"
"Junior School being used as significant parts of the set for the scenes filmed. Cwmaman was a traditional Labour Party stronghold, although in more recent times it has been challenged by Plaid Cymru and the Cynon Valley Party. It lies in the Aberaman South electoral ward, currently represented by Councillor Tina Williams (Labour). Cwmaman Cwmaman () is a former coal mining village near Aberdare, Wales. The name is Welsh for ""Aman Valley"" and the River Aman flows through the village. It lies in the valley of several mountains. Within the village, there are two children's playgrounds and playing fields, with"
"through the village alongside the main road. The village has a rugby union side which plays in the RFU Midlands 5 East (North) division. Two men were badly injured in an explosion at the Colliery on Saturday 31 December 2011. Meden Vale Meden Vale is a small former coal mining village originally known as Welbeck Colliery Village prior to renaming in the late 1960s. It is situated close to the small town of Market Warsop, in north Nottinghamshire, England, off the main A60 Mansfield to Worksop road, and lies within Mansfield District Council administrative area and Mansfield Parliamentary constituency, represented"
"post the strike, both sites of the whole unit closed as part of the NCB regional review on 6 November 1986. The village declined after the 1969 construction of the A470 which destroyed the historic old village. After the closure of the Nantgarw/Windsor Colliery and Coking works 18 months after the miners strike, the site was developed as Parc Nantgarw, joined to the larger Trefforest Industrial Estate. All that now remains of Nantgarw colliery are two small concrete pyramids marking the sites of the two shafts, and a commemorative winding wheel. Parc Nantgarw is home to the headquarters of Cadw"
"agent gave a statement to the Children's Employment Commission. The coal pits in nearby Caehopcyn ceased production in the 1960s, although the Nant Helen open cast coal mine continues to operate in the region. Abercraf has a number of public houses, a rugby union club (Abercrave RFC), junior/primary school, fire station and a Miners' Welfare Hall, a testament to the village's coal mining past. The Wales Ape and Monkey Sanctuary lies just outside the village. Abercraf lies beneath the slopes of the miniature mountain of Cribarth, famous for its 'Sleeping Giant' outline, clearly visible from the nearby A4067 Swansea to"
"of debris covered a section of the village in minutes. The classrooms at Pantglas Junior School were immediately inundated; young children and teachers died from impact or suffocation. On 26 October 1966, after resolutions in both Houses of Parliament, the Secretary of State for Wales appointed a tribunal to inquire into the causes of and circumstances relating to the Aberfan disaster. It was chaired by the respected Welsh judge and Privy Councillor Lord Justice Edmund Davies, who was born two miles from Aberfan and had attended Mountain Ash Grammar School. Before the tribunal began, the Attorney General imposed restrictions on"
"an open switch-panel which was being worked on. This was the last major mining disaster in South Wales history. At about 4.00 p.m. on Friday 11 March 1910, the lives of one adult and five children were lost when pent-up water from an abandoned coal mine burst through into the village. The mountainside seemed to give way, 'as though from a volcanic eruption' and a torrent of water together with huge amounts of earth, boulders and other debris swept down the hillside. Directly in the path of this torrent lay Adams Terrace and, according to contemporary newspaper reports, the first"
"Minnie Pit Disaster The Minnie Pit disaster was a coal mining accident that took place on 12 January 1918 in Halmer End, Staffordshire, in which 155 men and boys died. The disaster, which was caused by an explosion due to firedamp, is the worst ever recorded in the North Staffordshire Coalfield. An official investigation never established what caused the ignition of flammable gases in the pit. Minnie Pit, which was named after Minnie Craig, the daughter of one of the owners, a Mr. W.Y. Craig, was opened in 1881 in the small village of Halmer End, Newcastle-under-Lyme. At deep, it"
"of these have been kept and still bear the messages. The men that perished left 17 widows and 75 dependent children. In 1883 a coal mine was opened near Mount Kembla in the Illawarra District of New South Wales. In 1902 there was an explosion in the mine and 96 men and boys lost their lives, either while at work or in the course of trying to save the lives of others. Every family in the village lost a relative. A service of commemoration is held annually on 31 July at the Mount Kembla Soldiers' and Miners' Memorial Church. This"
"which claimed 207 lives. Other fatal incidents occurred in the town in 1878 and 1879. Another serious incident occurred in the small Ayrshire mining village of Knockshinnoch in September 1950. For several tense days rescuers battled bravely against all odds to reach the 129 men trapped deep underground when a field above where they were working caved-in, flooding the mine workings with thick liquid peat, cutting off all means of escape. 116 were rescued but 13 died. A film, ""The Brave Don't Cry"" was made about the distaster in 1952. During the period 1850 to 1930 the South Wales coalfield"
"of Ebbw Vale (at the time Michael Foot's constituency) which was abolished at that election. Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney (UK Parliament constituency) Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney () is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The constituency is noted for containing the former coal mining village of Aberfan, where a catastrophic collapse of a colliery spoil tip resulted in 144 deaths, 116 of which being children. 1983-1997: The Borough of Merthyr Tydfil, and the District of Rhymney Valley wards Nos. 5 and 14 to 20. 1997-2010: The County Borough of Merthyr"
"Daw Mill Daw Mill was a coal mine located near the village of Arley, near Nuneaton, in the English county of Warwickshire. The mine was Britain's biggest coal producer. It closed in 2013 following a major fire. It was the last remaining colliery in the West Midlands. Daw Mill mined a five-metre thick section of the Warwickshire Coalfield (known as the ""Warwickshire Thick"") in the north of the county. It was owned and operated by UK Coal and in 2008 employed 680 people. The two shafts that served Daw Mill were first sunk between 1956 and 1959, and 1969 and"
"tragic loss of life which was an everyday reality during the valley's coal mining era, including most of the thirty-one victims of the Rhondda's last mining disaster at the Cambrian Colliery in May 1965. The Trealaw electoral ward is coterminous with the borders of the Trealaw community and elects one county councillor to Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council. Since 1995 representation has mainly flipped between the Labour Party and Plaid Cymru. Since the May 2012 election it has been represented by Labour's Joy Rosser. A 2018 review of electoral arrangements by the Local Democracy and Boundary Commission for Wales"
"Llay Llay (Welsh: ""Llai"" meaning meadow) is a village and local government community, the lowest tier of local government, part of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It borders several other villages including Gwersyllt and Gresford. At the 2001 Census, the total population of the community of Llay, including Llay village, was 4,905, reducing to 4,814 at the 2011 Census. Prior to the 1960s, Llay was a coal mining village. Llay Main Colliery, at one time the largest colliery in Wales and after 1952 the deepest pit in the UK, was a major employer for the area before its coal reserves"