ABERFAN DISASTER 1966

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ABERFAN DISASTER 1966
this is short, but VERY serious
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what happened?

• On 21st October 1966, a landslide involving a
  coal tip slag heap (waste coal
• pile) at Aberfan in South Wales killed 147 people.

116 of these people were children at the Pantglas
Junior School
The landslide involved 100 000m3 of coal waste
travelling at speeds of up to 20mph
Earlier landslides had occurred nearby but the
National Coal Board believed that any movement
was slow enough to allow a warning to be given
woh it just gets worse
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the causes

• This area had had more rain in October than it
  gets on average during the
• whole month

More than half of the rain had fallen in one
downpour two days before
A build-up of rain water inside the tip burst the
base this caused 2million tonnes of waste to
slide down the valley
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the causes
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Pantglas School

• It was 9.15am and the school had just finished
  morning prayers when
• millions of tonnes of coal waste, rock and water
  crumpled 245m down
• the Aberfan mountain. The children were due to
  start their weeks
• half-term at midday. However many children never
  reached the
• school at all. Fog delayed a busload of 50
  seniors and juniors from
• the nearby village of Mount Pleasant. Some
  decided to walk and
• arrived late enough to miss the landfall

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