00:00There are a few things more synonymous with Wales than coal mining. Sure, you can say
00:07rugby, a flag, daffodils, sheep, but the mines, while still being an iconic part of Wales's
00:12history, was also one of the fundamental building blocks of Welsh society. Towns like here in
00:16Merdi were built on coal and provided much of the town with employment. Cast your minds
00:22back a century and most of the people here would have been working down the mines or
00:25at least had a job connecting to the coal mining industry, but nowadays it could easily
00:29be cast aside and forgotten as a remnant of the past. But that's certainly not what's
00:35happening here in Merdi, and earlier on this month this massive mural behind me was unveiled
00:40as a memorial to the coal mining industry in the town, in the Rhondda and across Wales.
00:47Coal mining was a grim and dangerous job and many people lost their lives down the pits.
00:52There are a few memorials around Wales for those that died, like here behind me at the
00:55Merdi Gateway Miners' Memorial. While some elements of the mining industry in Wales
01:01can be celebrated as a very Welsh and very important time, it's also important to remember
01:05how dangerous it was and, by and large, the immense wealth that created by the mining
01:10in Wales didn't always stay here, and these poor mining towns across the valleys are a
01:14testament to that. Back in 1885, a few years after the coilery here in Merdi opened, an
01:21explosion meant 81 men and boys lost their lives in the pits, and this memorial is for
01:26them. It also features masonry from the now-demolished Merdi Workingmen's Club, showing how important
01:32mining is to the people here. For better or for worse, mining is no longer a central industry
01:38here in Wales. Times change, technology changes, and the environmental impact was clear. Closing
01:45the mines in Wales was certainly a controversial decision and created a massive rift in Welsh
01:50public life. But, for now, it's important to take a minute to remember just how impactful
01:55mining was to people all across the valleys.
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