Flashback to Aberfan: What Happened?

People affected by the Aberfan coal mining disaster have joined together for a special church service to remember those who died.

40 years ago, a normal morning turned into a nightmare when a coal mine in a village called Aberfan slid over a hillside hitting and utterly destroying a school and 20 houses. 116 children and 28 adults were killed in the accident. The students had just begun class on October 21, 1966, when a landslide, bigger than a house, hit Pantglas Junior School.

• Some 3,000 people gathered for a mass funeral for the victims, which was held a week after the disaster
• The organisation in charge of the mine said that heavy rainfall had caused the mining waste to slip down the hillside.
• An inquiry later found that the organisation - called National Coal Board - was to blame and should pay compensation to the people affected.
• The mines have now closed.
• Pantglas school was demolished and a memorial garden now stands on the site.

The village in south Wales still remembers this horrible day. The NCB was blaming heavy rainfall when it really was all their fault. Lots of people went to the rescue of those trapped but few survivors were found.

CBBC Newsround-Service to mark Aberfan disaster

This is a video of someone who lived through that time. I feel horrible about howe many people died that day.