Centralia Ghost Town | Pennsylvania Tragedy: May 27, 1962

On 27^th May 1962, Centralia ghost town, Pennsylvania, faced such a phenomenon that the consequences of that event exist to date.

History of Centralia Ghost Town Mine Fire

What happened in Centralia, Pennsylvania? The citizens of Centralia were preparing themselves for their memorial celebrations that would take place the day after.

However, before the celebration, they had to deal with an issue that was cleaning up the landfill.

The city council meeting that was held earlier determined that they would be cleaning up the 300-foot wide, and 75 feet long mine, by putting it on fire.

Getting rid of the trash items by burning them was a common practice then.

However, the only concern is that the Centralia ghost town had been a huge coal mining zone in the past, and the mine was on top of an old coal mine. They set the landfill on fire using hosepipes.

They sprayed the flames to hold fire under control and waited until the trash was completely burnt. They had no idea they would be waiting for 55 years.

The fire snibbed onto an old coal layer from the mine, gradually spreading through the mines under the city.

Even though the flames were covered during the day on the 25^th of May, more Centralia fire was seen on May 29^th.

Working on extinguishing the fire and then discovering that the fire emerged again every other day continued for weeks.

And when there were no fire signs, locals constantly complained about the smell of trash and coal coming out of the pits.

The authorities tried everything to extinguish the fire for several years. They forced water into the mines frequently. They shrouded the surface with clay, trying to suppress the fire.

They forced a slurry of water, ash, and rocks into the mine; however, nothing worked. Ultimately, they had to give up due to having no choice. Later, the city was doomed.

Families were repositioned to nearby towns. After 2013, only 7 denizens’ were allowed to live in the city.

The streets’ exterior is no longer hot like before since the blaze has moved deeper into the earth.

In certain areas, you could still observe smoke emerging from the ground. Parts of Route 61 had to shut down and relocated since it wasn’t a safe passage to drive anymore.

And because coal generates lethal carbon monoxide, the air is also unsafe to breathe in specific areas.

Centralia Ghost Town Church

When the fire began, there were 5 churches in the Centralia ghost town. They vanished, one by one.

In 2015, Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, the head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, ran a trip to a Pennsylvania church while on tour in the US.

Currently, the church remains in Centralia as of the recovered structure left. Former occupants pay their visit to the Centralia ghost town to only attend ceremonies at the church.

Father Michael Hustko proffers doughnuts and coffee to the worshippers after the ceremony.

In the meantime, the government says that the fire could continue to burn for 100 years, and some people in the neighborhood don’t consider it a threat.

The church stands still on its rock-hard establishment as a symbol of strength and devotion. For the Centralia movie, click here