Aberfan
| Aberfan | |
|---|---|
 South entrance to Aberfan in November 2005 | |
| OS grid reference | SO070002 |
| Community | |
| Principal area | |
| Preserved county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Merthyr Tydfil |
| Postcode district | CF48 |
| Dialling code | 01443 |
| Police | South Wales |
| Fire | South Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
Aberfan (Welsh pronunciation: [ˌabɛrˈvan]) is a former coalmining village in South Wales, 4 miles (6 km) south of Merthyr Tydfil Town. The Taff Trail (locally known as the "Canal Bank" or just "the bank") runs through Aberfan from Troed-y-rhiw, to Treharris. The River Taff also flows through Aberfan.
On 21 October 1966, it became known for the Aberfan disaster, when a colliery spoil heap collapsed into homes and a school, killing 116 children and 28 adults.
Education
There are now two 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.
Facilities
- Aberfan & Merthyr Vale Community Centre - a community centre with a swimming pool, fitness room, weights room, cafe and a hall.[1]
- The post office in the village is open six days a week.
- Aberfan Cemetery and Aberfan Disaster Remembrance Area
Aberfan disaster
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 over a layer of highly porous sandstone that contained numerous underground springs, and several tips had been built up directly over these springs. Although local authorities had raised specific concerns in 1963 about spoil being tipped on the mountain above the village primary school, these were largely ignored by the National Coal Board's area management.[2]
Early on the morning of Friday, 21 October 1966, after several days of heavy rain, a subsidence of about 3–6 metres occurred on the upper flank of colliery waste tip No. 7. At 9:15 a.m. more than 150,000 cubic metres of water-saturated debris broke away and flowed downhill at high speed. A mass of over 40,000 cubic metres of debris smashed into the village in a slurry 12 metres (39 ft) deep.[3]
The slide destroyed a farm and twenty terraced houses along Moy Road, and slammed into the northern side of the Pantglas Junior School and part of the separate senior school, demolishing most of the structures and filling the classrooms with thick mud and rubble up to 10 metres (33 ft) deep. Mud and water from the slide flooded many other houses in the vicinity, forcing many villagers to evacuate their homes.
In total, 116 children and 28 adults were killed.[4]
Aberfan Memorial
After the disaster the Mayor of Merthyr immediately launched a Disaster Fund to aid the village and the bereaved. The fund’s final sum totalled approximately £1,750,000. In 1997 this represented approximately £17.5 million in donations. The concerns of the village and donors grew about how the money in the fund would be used with the community split between compensating the bereaved, whilst others felt it should benefit the wider community. The funds paid for the memorial garden and cemetery along with other facilities to aid the regeneration of Aberfan both physically and emotionally.[5]
The Memorial Garden and cemetery is where many of the victims are buried. The original Portland and Nabresina Stone memorials erected shortly after the disaster began to deteriorate and in 2007 the Aberfan Memorial Charity refurbished the Memorial Garden area including all of the archways and memorials. The weathered masonry was replaced with polished pearl white granite, all inscriptions were re-engraved and additional archways were erected.[6]
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.
A playground was opened on the site of Pantglas Primary school which was destroyed during the disaster, the park was partly opened by the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh on her visit to Aberfan in 1974.[7]
The Aberfan Memorial Charity was founded in 1989 and is responsible for the maintenance and repair of the cemetery and memorial garden.[8]
References
- ^ [1]
- ^ Iain McLean & Martin Johnes: The Aberfan Disaster website
- ^ South Wales Police official website - The Aberfan Disaster
- ^ "1966: Aberfan - a generation wiped out". BBC. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
- ^ http://www.nuffield.ox.ac.uk/politics/aberfan/adf.htm
- ^ http://mossfords.co.uk/projects/Aberfan_Cemetery.aspx
- ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/royalty/9717179/Her-Majesty-new-book-of-photographs-celebrating-the-life-of-Queen-Elizabeth-II.html?frame=2415972
- ^ http://opencharities.org/charities/701570
External links
- Old Merthyr Tydfil: Aberfan - Historical Photographs of Aberfan.
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