The Day 116 Children Were Buried Alive by Coal Waste

Added: 2026-05-16

[00:00:00]On October 21st, 1966, the children of Pantglas Junior School were just starting their morning lessons. At 9:15, they heard a sound like thunder rolling down the mountain, but it wasn't thunder. 2 million tons of coal waste had broken free from the tip above their village. A black avalanche of toxic sludge was racing toward them at 60 mph. The wave hit the school first. It buried the building in seconds. 116 children died that morning, crushed and suffocated under a mountain of industrial waste. Rescuers clawed through the black slurry with their bare hands. They could hear voices calling from beneath, but for most, help came too late. The coal tip had been unstable for years. Workers had reported cracks.

[00:00:47]Springs had appeared where there should be none, but nothing was done. The Coal Board knew the danger. They built the tip anyway, right above a school full of children. An entire generation of Aberfan was buried alive by the very industry that kept their town running.