Forbach: 40 years ago, the last French mining disaster

On 25 February 1985, at 0721 hours, the terrible explosion of the Simon well, at 1050 meters deep, killed 22 people, most of them killed instantly, and 103 wounded. "The rescue lasted days," recalls Bernard Starck, who had been working as an electro-mechanic at the Simon well for nine years. He was ...