Before 1962, Centralia, Pennsylvania, was a thriving old mining town. However, that changed when a fire broke out in May that year. Although it is not completely clear what started it, the results are well known: the fire spread into the labyrinthine mining tunnels running under the town, causing devastation as it went. Fissures appeared in the ground, sending plumes of gases and smoke into the town, and most of the residents were forced away.
This may sound like a scene from a disaster movie or even a horror story, but it really happened – and the fire is still burning today, 62 years later.
Before the fire
Before the fire started, Centralia had relied on its mining industry for over a century. The key to its relative success was the abundance of anthracite coal deposits that existed below its surface. Once the mines began to open, the borough of Centralia was incorporated in 1866. Originally, the town was called Centreville, but was renamed in 1865 after the US Post Office pointed out that a Centreville already existed in Schuylkill County.
The town had a colourful if not productive early history. It became a home of members of the Molly Maguires, an Irish secret society that conducted various activities, such as organizing miners in unions, across parts of the Eastern United States. In the 1860s, members of the society are said to have committed several acts of violence in the town – including allegedly murdering Alexander Rae, the town’s founder, in 186. This is the popular account, but its truth is a matter of debate – it is possible the Molly Maguires were set up.
By the 1890s, the town was home to more than 2,700 people who depended on the mine in one way or another. Even after the Great Depression struck and forced multiple mines to close, it did not stop the town.
The fire itself
Throughout its life, fires were not unusual in Centralia. Some fires broke out in the mines during the 19th and 20th centuries, each causing its own levels of damage. However, none of them compete with what happened in 1962.
As mentioned above, it is still not clear exactly when or how the fire started. One of the more popular beliefs is that it started at the Centralia landfill, which was one of the abandoned mine pits that was repurposed into a dump site. At the time, the city council had apparently wanted to address the problem of trash that was attracting rats and causing unwanted smells in the town.
In May 1962, the council wanted to clean up the landfill ahead of Centralia’s Memorial Day festival. Their solution: burn it all.
It is possible the fire reached deep into the mine and ignited a vein of coal that then spread into a much larger fire. Unfortunately, the mining tunnels spread out and weaved under the whole town, and eventually closed down the whole mining industry as the carbon monoxide fumes were too dangerous. The fire has spread so far into the network of tunnels that it was deemed too impractical to attempt to combat. As such, Congress bought out Centralia’s residents, who were paid to leave. Soon after, all the buildings in the town were condemned and the ZIP code was removed. Only seven residents remained, but they have been forbidden from passing their properties onto anyone else or to sell them.
The fire under Centralia is still raging today and may well continue to do so another 250 years, until it consumes all its fuel.
To be sure, the fire under Centralia is not the only one of its kind. Across the world, there are thousands of coal fires burning, and all of them are nearly impossible to extinguish. The threat is also a growing one. Open coal beds are exposed to oxygen, making it easier for humans or natural chemical processes to spark a flame. It's been reported that the US, China, and India have the highest number of ongoing coal fires. Unfortunately, there will likely be more of these as time goes by.
[H/T History.com]
