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Witness History: The Mine Disaster That Devastated Post-War Italy

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marcinelle 1956 high res cropped.jpg

30/08/2018 GMT

The Mine Disaster That Devastated Post-War Italy

BBC World Service - Witness History, The Mine Disaster That Devastated Post-War Italy

How an accident at Marcinelle in Belgium killed more than 100 Italian migrant workers.

How an accident at a mine in the Belgian town of Marcinelle in1956 killed more than 100 Italian migrant workers.

In August 1956, a fire at a coal mine in Belgium killed 262 people. The tragedy caused grief across Europe, but particularly in Italy because more than half the dead were Italian migrants. Simon Watts brings together the memories of Lino Rota, a rescue worker at Marcinelle, and Rosaria di Martino, whose family moved to Marcinelle from a village in Sicily. The interview with Lino Rota was conducted by Italian journalist, Paolo Riva.

PHOTO: A funeral at Marcinelle in 1956 (Getty Images)

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