The eerie ghost town that’s been on fire for 63 years now a haven for dark tourism

This small town has sat almost for over 60 years. Once home to 1,000 residents in 1980, today only around five remain due to a fire that has been burning beneath the town since 1962.

Centralia in Columbia County, , has been plagued by poisonous gases spewing from the ground through hundreds of fissures, leaving the ground at constant risk of collapse. Once a thriving community, it now attracts eager to witness the ghostly plumes of spoke and explore a town that has largely been reclaimed by nature.

The first two mines in Centralia opened in 1856, followed by several more opened in the 1860s. It became so vital that a was constructed in 1865, enabling the transportation and expansion of Centralia’s coal sales to markets in eastern Pennsylvania. According to federal census records, the town reached its maximum population of 2,761 in 1890.

At its peak, the town had seven churches, five hotels, 27 saloons, two theatres, a bank, post office and 14 general and grocery stores.

Thirty-seven years later the production of anthracite coal had reached its peak in Pennsylvania. In the following years, production declined, as many young miners from Centralia enlisted in the military when the US entered . Then, the Wall Street Crash of 1929 resulted in the closure of five Centralia-local mines. Coal mining continued in Centralia until the 1960s, when most of the companies shut down.

There is significate debate about the cause of the Centralia fire, with some concluding it started with an attempt to clean up the town . One theory states that on May 27, 1962, 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.

In 1979, locals became aware of the scale of the problem when a gas-station owner, then-mayor John Coddington, inserted a dipstick into one of his underground tanks to check the fuel level. When he withdrew it, it seemed hot. He lowered a thermometer into the tank on a string and was shocked to discover that the temperature of the gasoline in the tank was 77.8C.

On February 14, 1981, a 12-year-old resident named Todd Domboski fell into a large sinkhole that suddenly opened beneath his feet in his grandmother’s backyard, but saved himself by grabbing onto a tree root. The plume of hot steam from the hole was tested and found to contain a lethal level of .

In 1983, Congress allocated more than $42 million (£32.5 million) for relocation efforts. Nearly all of the residents accepted the government’s buyout offers and more than 1,000 people moved out of the town and 500 structures were demolished. By 1990, the census recorded 63 remaining residents.

The Centralia mine fire extended beneath the village of Byrnesville, a short distance to the south, and required its abandonment. Several signs warn of underground fire, unstable ground, and dangerous levels of carbon monoxide.

The underground fire is still burning, and in 2006 it was reported that it is expected to do so for another 250 years. Few homes remain standing, as most have been demolished or reclaimed by nature. Some areas are even being filled with new-growth forest.

The damaged portion of Pennsylvania Route 61 was abandoned and became known as Graffiti Highway. During the , several hundred mounds of dirt were laid over the area, thus ending a decades-long fascination with the desolate stretch of road.

In October 2013, the remaining residents settled their lawsuit, receiving $218,000 (£169k) in compensation for the value of their homes, along with $131,500 (£102k) to settle additional claims, and the right to stay in their homes for the rest of their lives.