EYNON -- Contractors started work Saturday to put out a fire at the site of an old coal mine. It's a project that is estimated to cost about a half a million dollars.
The fire is located below Ed Staback Park and it is just steps from a residential neighborhood.
People who live nearby are glad to see the crews begin working to put it out. They may be kind of noisy and start at 7 a.m., but the crews working to put out a coal mine fire are a welcome sight to the people who live nearby.
"I was very scared. I didn't know where we were going to go."
Lorie Bonczkiewicz was the one who discovered the fire while she was walking the dog with her husband in Eynon.
At first she feared it would force her from her home, but now feels the situation is under control.
"I feel safer. I feel like our homes are safe and I am happy for our neighbors, that we don't have to move. They know where it is at up there," Bonczkiewicz said.
You can feel the warmth from the ground, smell the burning in the air, and see the smoke. Crews say they won't know how big the fire is until they open up the mine and start digging. That is expected to happen Tuesday or Wednesday.
"When we are excavating it, we will have a water truck here with foam and water to put the fire out," said Gary Linde of Leeward Construction.
Workers say the plan is to dig a U-shaped trench around the underground fire and monitor the site to prevent any of that foam and water from contaminating the neighborhood.
They hope to get the job done in three to four weeks, but that could change once they get in the ground and see what they are dealing with.
Tara Krupovich lives just yards away. She says she hopes the fire is put out soon because the smell is getting worse.
"We can actually smell it inside our house. A couple nights a week we can smell it," Krupovich said.
Meanwhile her kids and their playmates just take in the activity around the fire.
"I didn't really believe there was a fire underground, but I don't know. I guess there was," said Aiden Skeen.
A spokesperson for the Department of Environmental Protection says the best way to prevent mine fires is to stop people from throwing out trash in or around a mine.
