A MEMORIAL statue to commemorate 50 years since the Six Bells colliery disaster will be unveiled on Monday.

Work is under way on the 20 metre high “Guardian” statue which will be dedicated to the 45 miners who lost their lives in the major mining disaster on June 28, 1960 at the Six Bells colliery.

The feet of the statue were placed at the site yesterday and the statue will slowly be built over the weekend. There are ten parts of the statue to put together.

An existing memorial was in danger of falling into disrepair and so following consultation with the local community and organisations such as Abertillery and Llanhilleth community council, it was decided that an iconic landmark should be brought to the area to commemorate the disaster.

Blaenau Gwent council and Six Bells Communities First Partnership secured £200,000 funding which included £192,000 from the Heads of the Valleys programme as well as contributions from the local council, local businesses and community groups, public donations and the Valleys Partnership.

The steel statue, which is designed by Sebastien Boyesen, will sit on the Ebbw Fach Trail above the former Six Bells colliery site.

It consists of a 12.6 metre high statue of a miner of that era standing on a 7.4metre high plinth.

The name, age and home town of each of the 45 victims of the disaster will be cut into a steel band surrounding the plinth.

Mair Sheen, of Communities First, thanked family and friends of the victims for their support and commitment towards the project.

She said: “We have been able to realise the community’s strong desire to create a fitting memorial to those who lost their lives in 1960 and mining communities everywhere.”

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams will lead the official service on Monday at 10.30am to unveil the statue.