Centralia, Pennsylvania: The Creepy Place That’s Been Burning Since 1962
Cole Young/FlickrSmoke rising from beneath Route 61 in Centralia, Pennsylvania.
Ghost towns are certainly creepy places to visit. But what about a ghost town that’s been on fire for more than six decades? That’s what daring visitors will find as they approach Centralia, Pennsylvania.
The town’s infamous — and still burning — fire started in 1962, when Centralia officials decided to burn out a local landfill. A fire was carefully set, and the job seemed to be done. But then, numerous inexplicable fires began popping up around town, leading to the horrifying realization that the landfill fire had been set right above the mouth of an old mine.
Though attempts to put out the fire failed, most residents weren’t that bothered by the problem at first. The ground remained so warm that they could grow tomatoes in the winter, and the underground fire conveniently kept snow from accumulating on the sidewalks. But by the 1980s, things in Centralia began to get worse — and very dangerous.
U.S. Bureau of MinesA flicker from the Centralia mine fire as seen in 1969, seven years after the blaze first started.
Then, roads and sidewalks started to cave in, trees died as the ground became covered in ash, and residents began to fall ill from carbon monoxide poisoning. In 1981, a huge sinkhole opened right beneath a local resident, who was only able to survive from falling 150 feet into the burning darkness below by grabbing onto an exposed tree root before his cousin rescued him.
Just 1,000 people remained in Centralia at that point, and most of them agreed to evacuate following the incidents. Some, however, have fought for the right to stay in the doomed town. As of 2022, fewer than five residents remained. Meanwhile, the fire is expected to burn for another 250 years.
Thrill seekers can visit Centralia today — the town isn’t fenced off or anything — but it’s dangerous to do so. Toxic gases rise from the Earth, and the ground frequently caves in. When it comes to the scariest places on Earth to check out, then, Centralia is perhaps best left alone.
