Aberfan disaster 60th anniversary.

At 9.15am on Friday 21 October 1966, the children of Pantglas Junior School in the Welsh village of Aberfan were settling into their last day of lessons before half-term. Above them, after days of heavy rain, a colliery spoil tip, a mountain of waste from the coal mine, began to slide.
Around 140,000 cubic yards of water-saturated debris surged down the hillside, engulfing the school and nearby houses. In all, 144 people died: 116 children, most aged between seven and ten, and 28 adults including five teachers. Some of the school staff died trying to protect the children in their care.
A public inquiry placed the blame on the National Coal Board, finding that the disaster ‘could and should have been prevented’. However, no NCB employee or board member was demoted, dismissed, or prosecuted, nor did the board face any corporate sanctions after the disaster. There was no prosecution either for manslaughter or for any regulatory offence.
The remaining tips were removed only after a long fight by residents, against resistance from the Board and the government on grounds of cost.
The community has carried the loss ever since. Many villagers developed lasting health problems, and around half of survivors have experienced post-traumatic stress at some point in their lives. One survivor recalled: ‘We didn’t go out to play for a long time because those who’d lost their own children couldn’t bear to see us. We all knew what they were feeling and we felt guilty about being alive.’