Home»All Photographs»Belgium, World Heritage (click to see more)»Major Mining Sites of Wallonia»Bois-du-Cazier

Dating from early last century, the architectural ensemble, which was listed in 1990, contains three parallel groups of buildings proudly displaying their pediments. The two winding-wheels, which have been painstakingly restored, crown them with their majesty.The surface installations, which form the pithead of the mine, enable people to understand the working of the mine and to follow, step by step, in the footsteps of the miners who worked there.
On the morning of August 8, 1956, a fire in the mine Bois du Cazier in Marcinelle caused 262 victims, with only 12 survivors. A mining cart on an elevator cage hit an oil pipe and electricity lines, with the resulting fire trapping the miners. Most of the victims were immigrants.