As the 69th anniversary approaches, this August 8, the Cazier wood disaster, the Wallonia-Brussels Federation has decided to classify among its “treasures“The register of presence of coal worker staff.
Of purely administrative vocation, the document today takes on an important historical and emotional dimension. The names of the 262 victims, including a majority of Italians, are gradually striped, annotated in red from the mention “deceased“, during rescue operations.”This unique document, which has become a symbol of collective memory, embodies both human drama, the realities of post-war immigration and the beginnings of European awareness in work safety“, According to a press release from the Minister-President of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation.
In addition to this register, the type centrifugal fan “Guibal“Cazier wood is also raised to the rank of Treasure of the FWB.”Industrial engineering masterpiece designed around 1875 by French engineer Théophile Guibal, this fan almost seven meters in diameter played a crucial role in improving the ventilation of mines, allowing the evacuation of gray, carbon dioxide and dust“, notes the federation. Produced to hundreds of copies, that of the Cazier wood is however the last preserved in its integrity.
On August 8, 1956, a fire in the coal galleries of the Cazier wood in Marcinelle causa the death of 262 minors of 12 different nationalities. This accident is the largest industrial disaster in Belgian history. The Bois du Cazier site has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2012.