The Aberfan disaster Catastrophe was the catastrophic collapse Catastrophe of a colliery spoil tip at around 9:15 am on 21 October 1966 .

The tip had been created Causation on a mountain slope above the Welsh village of Aberfan , near Merthyr Tydfil and overlaid Filling a natural spring .

There were seven spoil tips on the slopes above Aberfan ; Tip 7—the one that slipped Motion_directional onto the village—was begun Process_start in 1958 and , at the time of the disaster Catastrophe , was high .

The Aberfan Disaster Memorial Fund ( ADMF ) was set up Reforming_a_system on the day of the disaster Catastrophe .

The remaining tips were removed Removing only after a lengthy fight Defending by Aberfan residents , against resistance Defending from the NCB and the government on the grounds of cost Cost .