BANKS TOWNSHIP -- The state has taken another step to extinguish the mine fire burning in Carbon County.
DEP has awarded a $9.3 million contract to Hazleton Shaft Corporation to isolate and put out the fire.
The underground fire inside the Jeansville mine near Tresckow has been burning for years.
Hazleton Shaft currently has a permit with DEP to mine land adjacent to the site and has been working to put out the part of the fire that is burning on the active mining area in Carbon County.
The hope is to put out the fire by digging two isolation trenches which would stop it from spreading.