King and Prince William to make emotional visit to remember Aberfan victims 60 years on

King and Prince William to make emotional visit to remember Aberfan victims 60 years on Buckingham Palace has announced that the King, Queen and Prince William will make a rare joint visit to Aberfan next week for the 60th anniversary of the disaster there that killed 144 people The King, Queen and Prince William will come together for an emotional visit to remember the victims of the Aberfan tragedy 60 years on. Buckingham Palace has announced they will make a rare joint visit to the Welsh village next Wednesday to pay tribute to the 144 people, mostly children aged between seven and 10, who died when a coal waste tip collapsed onto a junior school and neighbouring houses. It will mark the 60th anniversary of the disaster when an avalanche of slurry slipped down a mountainside and buried Pantglas Junior School, which was packed with children, as well as 20 houses and a farm. Among those killed were 116 pupils and five teachers. The decision by Charles’ mother, the late Queen, not to visit the village in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy in October 1966 and the criticism it drew is often regarded as one of the biggest regrets of her 70-year reign. In Aberfan next week, the royals will pay a poignant tribute to the lives lost with a short prayer and moment of silence at the Aberfan Memorial Garden, which stands on the site of Pantglas School. Charles and William will lay wreaths, while Camilla will lay a posy of flowers in memory of those lost. They will then visit the Aberfan & Merthyr Vale Community Centre, where they hear from those who have first-hand experiences of what happened that day, including a former police officer who is 96, and meet retired emergency workers who worked tirelessly day and night to rescue those trapped. The royals will also spend time with survivors and bereaved parents, including members of the Aberfan Wives, which is a support group established for mothers who lost children in the disaster, while the King will also make a speech. Among those who will share their experiences of that day will be Jeff Edwards, a former pupil at Pantglas School, who was just eight when he survived the tragedy. He was one of the last survivors to be pulled from the slurry after someone spotted his white blonde hair peaking through the debris. He previously told the Mirror : “One minute I was listening to the teacher in a maths lesson, the next I was buried. I didn’t know what the hell had happened. “Big heavy beams and desks fell on top of me. I tried and struggled to get out but I just couldn’t. There was a little girl’s head on my shoulder. She had died, so I couldn’t move. I was frightened because that was the first dead person I had ever seen.” During the visit, William will also unveil a new Aberfan Memorial Tree sculpture at the nearby Ynysowen Community Primary School in memory of those who lost their lives. The tragedy on October 21, 1966, came as children began their first lesson of the day at Pantglas Junior School, on the last day of school before the half-term holidays. At exactly 9.15am, disaster struck when a giant tip of rock and shale from the nearby Merthyr Vale Colliery in the hills above the village collapsed following heavy rain. It sent a wall of slurry down the hill, flattening everything in its path, including the school, homes and a farm. A desperate rescue effort got underway, with people working day and night to try to desperately dig survivors from the rubble. The day after the tragedy, both the then Prime Minister Harold Wilson and Prince Philip visited the village - but the late Queen stayed away, with her and her then private secretary Lord Chateris believing her presence would have hampered the rescue efforts. She didn’t visit until eight days later after attracting criticism, and it is said she regarded the delay as one of the biggest mistakes of her reign. When she did visit, she comforted members of the community who had just attended a mass funeral, where many remarked that the monarch became unusually emotional and shaken by grief. The whole episode was dramatised in the hit Netflix show, The Crown. After the tragedy, Elizabeth II went on to visit the village three more times over the course of her reign and kept a promise to open a new school there when it was built in 2012. On the 50th anniversary of the disaster 10 years ago, a personal message from her was delivered to the people of Aberfan by the then Prince Charles. It read: “I well remember my own visit with Prince Philip after the disaster and the posy I was given by a young girl which bore the heartbreaking inscription 'from the remaining children of Aberfan. "Since then we have returned on several occasions and have always been deeply impressed by the remarkable fortitude, dignity and indomitable spirit that characterises the people of this village and the surrounding valleys. On this saddest of anniversaries I send my renewed good wishes to you all. Elizabeth R."