Fact #92973

The Aberfan Mining Disaster takes place in Aberfan, Wales, killing 144 people, including 116 children. Five months later The Bee Gees will write their first worldwide hit, New York Mining Disaster 1941, based on their feelings about Aberfan. According to Robin Gibb of The Bee Gees, 'Our lyric was entirely fictitious but that was our real inspiration. We were very affected by it, the news of that terrible disaster, but we didn't want to say that directly at the time, out of respect for the dead and their families.' Another song known to have been inspired by the Aberfan disaster is Dead End Street by The Kinks.