Hazleton Mine Subsidence Update after the Weekend

My wife's uncle's propane tank fell in one of the holes over the weekend:  NOT GOOD.  I saw him over the weekend on Saturday morning and as expected he was not in good spirits.  We are waiting it out to see if the holes are going to stop spreading.  The work to fill them in started today.  

Here is a clip from the Standard Speaker describing the tank incident:

A propane tank ruptured Saturday afternoon at the rear of 2 Smith Drive in Drifton as a hole caused by mine subsidence widened even more.
The 100-gallon gas tank fell into the hole and ruptured, according to Hazle Township Fire Chief Scott Kostician, causing emergency crews to take more safety precautions until the propane drained from the tank.
“If the propane gas tank ignites while it is draining out we will be on it with water hoses. That’s why we are standing by just in case it happens,” Kostician said.
The smell of the gas was evident throughout the neighborhood and downwind from the scene, located along Route 940 just south of the Drifton Curve.

Newspaper

• Going Under - Standard Speaker - 4/13/2008
  
• 2 more mine holes open up - The Times Leader - 4/14/2008
  
• Cave-in repairs to begin today - Standard Speaker - 4/14/2008
  

Mine Subsidence Update: The Hole is Growing!

It appears that the hole is spreading into the back yards.  Taken from the article below:

"This is really scary because we keep noticing little things,” said Margaret Pecile, owner of 2 Smith Drive. "Like if you take a look at the steps by our front porch, you’ll notice that there is a black strip beginning to form behind the steps. That’s because they are actually starting to sink."

At the home she shares with her husband, Robert, the hole undermined a patio and has caused huge cracks and forced part of the wall to shift away from the house. A similar incident happened during a 1979 subsidence in the area.

Newspapers

• Subsidence grows; fears persist - The Standard Speaker - 4/12/2008
  

Hazleton Mine Subsidence Information

On Wednesday evening, April 9th, I was watching the evening news and was surprised to discover that the mine subsidence that happened earlier that day occurred on my wife's relatives property After getting on the phone, we had learned everyone was ok, but the house was condemned and the situation went from bad to worse during the day.

The local media is covering this as their top story and every morning so far, I have been waking up to see their house, current status, and cameos from my relatives.  My grandfather-in-law was on WBRE, the morning addition (see thumbnail).  I also found Margie's picture in the Times Leader (black and white photo).  Robert is in the photo below in the red jacket.

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As I discover more information, I'll post it to my blog.

Television Stations

• "Subsidence Threatens Two Homes" - WNEP - 4/9/2008
• "Mine Subsidence in Hazle Township" - WBRE - 4/9/2008
• "Subsidence Damages Homes, Threatens Road & Gas Line" - [VIDEO] WBRE - 4/9/2008
• "No Work on Subsidence Until Next Week" - WNEP - 4/10/2008
  
• "Subsidence Threatening Natural Gas Line" - [VIDEO] WBRE - 4/10/2008
  

Newspapers

• "Subsidence hits home again" - The Times Leader - 4/11/2008
  
• "Subsidence displaces 2 families" - The Times Leader - 4/11/2008
  
• "Closing of Rt. 940 taking toll on drivers" - Standard Speaker - 4/11/2008
  
• "Homeowners on edge" - Standard Speaker - 4/11/2008
  
• "Moving on" - Standard Speaker - 4/11/2008
  
• "Two Hazle Twp. homes condemned after mine subsidence..." - The Citizens Voice - 4/11/2008