Centralia, Pennsylvania, a former coal mining town, has been burning for almost 60 years.
In 1962, the town council decided to burn a landfill, unaware it connected to underground mine shafts. This ignited a coal seam, which continues to burn.
After spending $7 million trying to put out the fire, Pennsylvania gave up in the 1990s.
Despite the dangers, around five residents still live there. With coal supplies under the town, the fire could burn for another 250 years.
Maybe it’s a good thing I live in a totally unwalkable area because if I could just mosey over to a convenience store then I’d buy too many sodas and too many sugary snacks too often and I’d become soooooo unhealthy
This is literally what so many town centers in this country could look like at Christmas time if our leaders updated our zoning codes and prioritized people over cars.
If we had the political will to build true electrified high-speed rail and reform our customs process, you could get from NYC to Montreal in 3 hours and to Toronto in 4.5. It takes 11 hours and 12.5 hours to make these trips via rail today. We deserve better.