7546
From: Teshuvah, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Anyone here know about Centralia PA's burning coal mine?
|
It has been burning since 1962. The gov't bought all the houses and moved everyone. It is dangerous now because of poisonous gases and sinkholes. How far is the river to the North of Centralia? Could they not have run a pipe from there and flooded the mine or it is too far? I suppose not or they would have done so. Somewhere says it could burn for another 100 t0 250 years. What a shame! A destroyed town, a polluter, and waste or resources. I read elsewhere that the major source of pollution in the world is erupting volcanoes, and second is out of control mine fires in China. See link above and this one: http://www.damninteresting.com/the-smoldering-ruins-of-centralia/ |
Responses:
[7548] [7547] [7549] [7551] [7552] [7553] [7557] [7558]
7548
From: sunflower, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Re: Anyone here know about Centralia PA's burning coal mine?
| My daughter and I went through there several years ago, stopped the car and walked around a bit. There are one or two homes still there, and a church, but most homes are gone and there are just streets which are quickly disappearing. The coal regions of PA are depressed areas, awaiting some miracle to rejuvenate them. |
Responses:
None
7547
From: Mae, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Re: Anyone here know about Centralia PA's burning coal mine?
|
There are several underground fires in PA. This one is about 90 miles from my Uncle's. The government decided to relocate the people many years ago because it is impossible to put the fire out. If they ever start enforcing fines for excessive CO2, PA would soon be bankrupt. Many families survived the dpression and made a nice profit on the oil, gas and coal mining but the ultimate price is still to be calculated. Interesting geology there though.... |
7549
From: BSE, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Re: Anyone here know about Centralia PA's burning coal mine?
|
Many coalfields in the USA are subject to spontaneous ignition. The federal Office of Surface Mining (OSM) maintains a database (AMLIS), which in 1999 listed 150 fire zones. In mid-2010, according to OSM, more than 100 fires were burning beneath nine states, most of them in Colorado, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Utah and West Virginia. But geologists say many fires go unreported, so that the actual number of them is nearer to 200, across 21 states.[2] In Pennsylvania, 45 fire zones are known, the most famous being the fire in the Centralia mine in the hard coal region of Columbia County, which has been burning since 1962.[2] In Colorado, coal fires have arisen as a consequence of fluctuations in the groundwater level, which can increase the temperature of the coal up to 300 °C, enough to cause it to spontaneously ignite.[citation needed] The Powder River Basin in Wyoming and Montana contains some 800 billion tons of brown coal, and the Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804 to 1806) reported fires there. Fires have been a natural occurrence in this area for about three million years and have shaped the landscape. For example, an area about 4,000 square kilometers in size is covered with coal clinker, some of it in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, where there is a spectacular view of fiery red coal clinker from Scoria Point.[19] Laurel Run, Pennsylvania[20] New Castle, Colorado New Straitsville, Ohio San Toy, Ohio Sego, Utah Vanderbilt, Pennsylvania Centralia, Pennsylvania (Started by garbage fire in an abandoned mine shaft.) The Centralia mine fire extended into the town of Byrnesville, Pennsylvania and caused this town to become extinct also. There is some disagreement over the specific event which triggered the fire. David DeKok, after studying available local and state government documents and interviewing former borough council members, argues in Unseen Danger and its successor edition, Fire Underground: The Ongoing Tragedy of the Centralia Mine Fire, that in May 1962, the Centralia Borough Council hired five members of the volunteer fire company to clean up the town landfill, located in an abandoned strip-mine pit next to the Odd Fellows Cemetery. This had been done prior to Memorial Day in previous years, when the landfill was in a different location. On May 27, 1962, the firefighters, as they had in the past, set the dump on fire and let it burn for some time. Unlike in previous years, however, the fire was not fully extinguished. An unsealed opening in the pit allowed the fire to enter the labyrinth of abandoned coal mines beneath Centralia. Joan Quigley argues in her 2007 book, The Day the Earth Caved In, that the fire had in fact started the previous day, when a trash hauler dumped hot ash and/or coal discarded from coal burners into the open trash pit. She noted that borough council minutes from June 4, 1962 referred to two fires at the dump, and that five firefighters had submitted bills for "fighting the fire at the landfill area". The borough, by law, was responsible for installing a fire-resistant clay barrier between each layer, but fell behind schedule, leaving the barrier partly incomplete. This allowed the hot coals to penetrate the vein of coal underneath the pit and light the subsequent subterranean fire. In addition to the council minutes, Quigley cites "interviews with volunteer firemen, the former fire chief, borough officials, and several eyewitnesses" as her sources for this explanation of the fire.[4][5] Another theory of note is the Bast Theory. It states that the fire was burning long before the alleged trash dump fire. However, due to overwhelmingly contrary evidence, few hold this position, and it is given little credibility.[4] However it started, it is agreed that the fire remained burning underground and spread through a hole in the rock pit into the abandoned coal mines beneath Centralia. Attempts to extinguish the fire were unsuccessful, and it continued to burn throughout the 1960s and 1970s. David DeKok began reporting on the mine fire as a reporter for The News-Item in Shamokin, Pa., beginning in late 1976. Between then and 1986, he wrote just over 500 news stories about the mine fire. Beginning in 1980, adverse health effects were reported by several people due to the byproducts of the fire, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and a lack of healthy oxygen levels. In 1979, locals became aware of the scale of the problem when a gas-station owner and then mayor, John Coddington, inserted a stick into one of his underground tanks to check the fuel level. When he withdrew it, it seemed hot, so he lowered a thermometer down on a string and was shocked to discover that the temperature of the gasoline in the tank was 172 °F (77.8 °C). Statewide attention to the fire began to increase, culminating in 1981 when 12-year-old resident Todd Domboski fell into a sinkhole four feet wide by 150 feet (46 m) deep that suddenly opened beneath his feet in a backyard. Only the quick work of his cousin, 14-year-old Eric Wolfgang, in pulling Todd out of the hole saved Todd's life, as the plume of hot steam billowing from the hole was measured as containing a lethal level of carbon monoxide. In 1984, the U.S. Congress allocated more than $42 million for relocation efforts. Most of the residents accepted buyout offers and moved to the nearby communities of Mount Carmel and Ashland. A few families opted to stay despite warnings from Pennsylvania officials. In 1992, Pennsylvania governor Bob Casey invoked eminent domain on all properties in the borough, condemning all the buildings within. A subsequent legal effort by residents to have the decision reversed failed. In 2002, the U.S. Postal Service revoked Centralia's ZIP code, 17927. [1][6] In 2009, Governor Ed Rendell began the formal eviction of Centralia residents.[7] |
7551
From: Teshuvah, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Re: Anyone here know about Centralia PA's burning coal mine? - Thanks!
|
>>>"In Colorado, coal fires have arisen as a consequence of fluctuations in the groundwater level, which can increase the temperature of the coal up to 300 °C, enough to cause it to spontaneously ignite." I wonder how groundwater would affect temperature. Water would lower it, wouldn't it, rather than raise it? Thank you, all of you for your comments. Very interesting subject. |
7552
From: Eve in FL, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Re: Anyone here know about Centralia PA's burning coal mine? - Thanks!
|
It is interesting, someone posted years ago and I looked into it. Seems to me not long ago I read it is probable to occur elsewhere, can't remember that however. Good topic for awareness. One would think it would be more commmon knoweledge than it is, yet it's tucked away so at least some get to learn the ramifciations of such. ~Eve |
7553
From: Bill Silver Eagle, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Re: probable to occur elsewhere
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Reminds me of the National Geographic program a few years back about Florida's Underground/Underwater Caves .... Central and Northern Florida, U.S.The largest and most active cave diving community in the United States is in north-central Florida. The North Floridan Aquifer expels groundwater through numerous first-magnitude springs, each providing an entrance to the aquifer's labyrinthine cave system. These high-flow springs have resulted in Florida cave divers developing special techniques for exploring them, since some have such strong currents that it is impossible to swim against them. The longest known underwater cave system in the USA, The Leon Sinks cave system, near Tallahassee, Florida, has multiple interconnected sinks and springs spanning two counties (Leon & Wakulla).[7] One main resurgence of the system, Wakulla Springs, is explored exclusively by a very successful and pioneering project called the Woodville Karst Plain Project (WKPP), although other individuals and groups like the US Deep Cave Diving Team, have explored portions of Wakulla Springs in the past. One of the deepest known underwater caves in the USA is Weeki Wachee Spring. Due to its strong outflow, divers have had limited success penetrating this first magnitude spring until 2007, when drought conditions eased the out-flowing water allowing team divers from Karst Underwater Research to penetrate to depths of 400 ft (120 m)[8] The Florida caves are formed from geologically young limestone with moderate porosity. The absence of speleothem decorations which can only form in air filled caves, indicates that the flooded Florida caves have a single genetic phase origin, having remained water filled even during past low sea levels. In plan form, the caves are relatively linear with a limited number of side passages allowing for most of the guidelines to be simple paths with few permanent tees. It is common practice for cave divers in Florida to joint a main line with a secondary line using a jump reel when exploring side passages, in order to maintain a continuous guideline to the surface. ============================================= On May 20, 2007, divers set off from Turner Sink to try and find a connection but were unable to when the cave became impassable after 3 miles (4.8 km).[4] On July 28, 2007, divers explored 1,220 feet (370 m) of new passage before discovering an exploration line from Wakulla Springs. On Dec 15, 2007, WKPP divers Casey McKinlay and Jarrod Jablonski completed a traverse from Turner Sink to Wakulla Springs, covering a distance of nearly 36,000 feet (11 km).[1] This traverse took approximately 7 hours, followed by 15 hours of decompression. Current projects include exploring, surveying, and mapping of the Wakulla-Leon Sinks Cave system, as well as coordinating between private, state, and federal agencies to help protect the flooded caves of the Woodville Karst Plain. In 2011, The Florida House of Representatives adopted "A resolution recognizing the Woodville Karst Plain Project for its outstanding contributions to the State of Florida through scientific research and its dedication and tireless efforts to promote the protection of the state's precious natural water resources" (HR9053). ================================================== The Leon Sinks Geological Area is located on the Woodville Karst Plain in southern and southwestern Leon County, Florida, United States. It is a mature karstic area on the Upper Floridan Aquifer. It is one of the most extensive underwater cave systems in the world and connects to Wakulla Springs. This hydrological system is extremely vulnerable to pollution because of the very high permeability of the carbonate aquifer. Extensive mapping and exploration of these caves has been done by the Woodville Karst Plain Project to understand the complex dynamics of the area and to understand the proper ecological approach to keeping this system clean. The Leon Sinks are full of life, including the freshwater eel and rare crustaceans, including the Woodville Karst Plain crayfish and the swimming Florida cave isopod Remasellus parvus, that only exist in the Woodville Karst Plain. =================================================  Ichetucknee Springs State Park is only about sixteen miles from where that massive sinkhole swallowed some farmers field to a depth of more that 200 feet that someone posted last week. ===================================================  So is this one, to the west of the sinkhole ... Diver Ron Simmons enters a cave in Florida’s Peacock Springs State Park, home to one of the longest underwater cave systems in the United States. Cave diving is dangerous—an average of 20 divers die worldwide each year. Many caves are vast, limestone labyrinths with dead-ends, tight passages, treacherous currents, and uncertain visibility. Divers rely on redundancy and training to get in and out safely, and use guidelines like breadcrumbs leading back to the surface. ======================================================  Divers’ floodlights illuminate a freshwater fountain in the open sea. The ancient Maya, who believed that inland cenote sinkholes were gateways to the underworld, were onto something: They are, in fact, physical gateways to the undersea world. Cenotes are connected by miles of underground channels to offshore cave openings like this one, where their pressurized freshwater gushes dramatically into the ocean. ====================================================== |
7557
From: Teshuvah, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Re: probable to occur elsewhere
| Would you please post the link for this. I searched but got too many options for it. |
Responses:
[7558]
7558
From: BSE, [DNS_Address]
Subject: http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/photos/wes-skile
| http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/photos/wes-skiles-photography/#/nationalgeographic-735653-990x742_24614_600x450.jpg |
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None