116 children died: Charles, Camilla and William remember Aberfan

King Charles, Queen Camilla and Prince William were in the Welsh village of Aberfan on Wednesday to remember the 144 people who died in the Aberfan disaster 60 years ago. It is rare for the King, the Queen and the heir to the throne to attend the same engagement.

On Friday 21 October 1966, a huge coal waste tip from Merthyr Vale Colliery slid down the mountainside and buried Pantglas Junior School, 20 houses and a farm. Of the 144 who died, 116 were children, most of them between seven and ten. At the school, 109 children and five teachers died.

Wreaths in the memorial garden

The commemoration was held in Aberfan Memorial Garden, on the site where Pantglas Junior School once stood. Queen Elizabeth opened the garden in 1974. There was a prayer and a minute's silence.

The King laid a wreath and the Queen laid a bouquet. Prince William laid a wreath with a message from him and the Princess of Wales: "In our memory and in our hearts forever."

Meeting the survivors

Afterwards they walked to the Aberfan and Merthyr Vale Community Centre. There they met survivors, bereaved parents, former pupils and siblings of those who died. They also met the Aberfan Wives, a support group for mothers who lost children in the disaster, and retired emergency workers who helped after the collapse, among them a 96-year-old former policewoman. The Ynysowen Male Voice Choir, founded after the disaster, performed.

Survivor Jeff Edwards, a former pupil of Pantglas Junior School, welcomed the King. The King paid tribute to the strength of the community and said it was very special to be back in the village on the anniversary.

Prince William also planted a memorial tree at Ynysowen Community Primary School. He visited Aberfan with the Princess of Wales in 2023.