Pocono News Section

Filling a mine subsidence

Filling a mine subsidence - Monday, April 14, 2008 at 4:35PM EST

Monday, Apr 14, 2008 @ 04:35pm EST

Filling in sinking ground, trying to save two homes.

That's what construction crews are doing right now in Hazle Township .

Last Monday, a mine subsidence opened the ground in the Drifton neighborhood.

Construction crews filled gaps and holes in the ground Monday afternoon.

They were left over from a Hazle Township mine subsidence.

Dave Philbin of the Office of Surface Mining says, "We're trying to get it done quickly because there's always the chance that it might go again. Since they originally investigated it on Wednesday, there's been rain twice and every time it rained it got worse."

Two houses on Smith Road have been condemned since the ground subsided last Monday.

Joe O'day lives in one.

He has mine subsidence insurance, but says he wants no part of the house when this repair work is done.

O’day says, "Even if they do repair it, i want someone else to live in it. I'm not going to sit in that house after they try to fix it and jump every time i hear a creek."

The owner of the second condemned home tells us he doesn't have mine subsidence insurance.

He's not sure what he'll do when crews are finished.

Once this grout is poured in gaps and holes in these yards, rocks will also be placed in the subsidence.

It's all work expected to be finished by the end of the week.

While crews fill the subsidence, they'll have to steer clear of a natural gas pipeline, which runs right through the subsidence, and pumps gas to nearly 10 thousand people in the city of Hazleton .

Jack Burke of Hazle Township hopes it won't affect his home.

"Heating the home doesn't concern me right now, it's the hot water. I mean you won't be able to shower or anything like that," says Burke.

The mine subsidence fill-in work is federally funded.

The office of surface mining says money will come from the abandoned mine land fund.