60 years since Aberfan

Today marks 60 years since the Aberfan Disaster, when 144 people - including 116 children -were killed in a landslide. On Friday, 21 October 1966, at 9.15 in the morning, a coal tip slid down the hillsides above the village in Cwm Taf, burying Pantglas Junior School, twenty houses, and a farmhouse.

Marking the anniversary, Siân Gwenllian MS said:

“It is hard to believe that today marks the 60th anniversary of the Aberfan disaster.

“I was 10 years old at the time, and I remember the horrific black-and-white images of the village on our television at home in Y Felinheli. I remember the tears streaming down my mother’s face who, as well as being a mother, was a teacher herself. I also remember my parents taking us to visit the memorial cemetery when it was opened.

“Over the years, our understanding as a nation has grown, not only of the profound human cost of the disaster, but also of its political significance and the questions of responsibility and accountability it raised. Above all, we continue to feel a deep and lasting sympathy for the people of Aberfan, a community forever changed by such a terrible tragedy.”