Since the 1960s, this city has been burning for an astonishing reason.
The images are striking and the story of this small American town is incredible. Located in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains of Pennsylvania, United States, the small town of Centralia stands out for having such a unique and dark history. This small town, once peaceful, is today abandoned due to a singular phenomenon: an underground fire that has been burning for decades.
The town of Centralia was founded in 1866 around coal mining. At the time, business was prosperous and the city was growing. The population reached its peak in the 1890s, with nearly 2,800 residents. The city flourished thanks to its coal mines and the industry that came from them. But in 1962, everything changed: an accidental fire broke out in one of the coal mines beneath the city.
Local authorities tried in vain to put out the flames and quickly called it quits, ordering the evacuation of the city. The underground fire spread, fueled by the region’s vast coal reserves. Over the years, Centralia has become the scene of a struggle against an invisible enemy. The streets began to crack as intense heat seeped from deep within the earth. Toxic gas fumes forced residents to hastily leave their homes.
In 1981, the federal government declared a state of emergency and ordered the total evacuation of the city. Most of the buildings have been demolished, and today Centralia is nothing more than a series of dilapidated roads winding through a desert landscape. The underground fire that has engulfed Centralia is fueled by the vast coal reserves beneath the city: abandoned mining galleries providing an inexhaustible source of fuel. High temperatures and toxic gas fumes have made the entire region inhospitable, condemning the city to a slow decline.
Despite repeated and strenuous attempts to put out the fire, nothing works: the flames continue to make this task impossible, illustrating in the extreme the most harmful consequences of unregulated mining on the environment.
Although Centralia is largely deserted, today it attracts visitors intrigued by its history. Colorful graffiti adorns the dilapidated roads, testifying to the mysterious appeal of this ghost town. But the journey is not without danger, the ground remaining unstable and the toxic fumes still dangerous. For more than sixty years now, the fire has continued to spread, despite the fact that nature has reclaimed its rights on the surface.
In 2019, only one resident remained in town: Gerald, a mechanic. “Before, there were still a few people, but now, it’s really a ghost town,” he told TF1 that year. “But I don’t feel alone. There are still people passing through and there are lots of visitors on weekends.”
