LUZERNE COUNTY, Pa. — Day three of work on the mine subsidence in Toby Creek in Luzerne began with the use of heavy equipment yet again.
"It's scary because I just walked that creek the other day. I don't know. I really don't even have any words, just lucky to be here," said Josh Petix of Luzerne. "It was really four days ago. Me and my brother and our dogs walked up the creek. And just thinking about it know it's like, 'Oh, I don't know what to say about it.'"
Crews have switched from using stones and sediment to concrete to try to fill the hole and stop water from diverting from the creek into the old mines.
The subsidence in the creek opened up over the weekend, sending water into the mines below.
"I'm just thinking, like, no one has an answer of where the water is going. So it must be just blocked up underground, and I'm thinking that spraying out of these holes that are weak, you know from all the rain," said Petix.
A map shows the subsidences and reports of water bubbling out of the ground since the hole opened in Toby Creek.
Ashley Harger in Forty Fort says it was her dog Blue that discovered this water behind her home on Tipp Street two hours after the mine subsidence in Luzerne on Sunday.
"The water collecting is coming out of the mine shaft pole. It's a vent pipe. It started around nine o'clock in the morning, and it's been leaking since," explained Harger.
Water is also coming up out of Simpson Street in Swoyersville.
Newswatch 16 found a crew from the Eastern Pennsylvania Coalition of Abandoned Mine Reclamation (EPCAMR) testing the water there.
"I will do some chemistry analysis to kind of indicate whether or not it is in fact mine drainage water or has indications of mine drainage at the surface here, and see if they're related it just in terms of the chemistry and compare it," said Bobby Hughes with EPCAMR.
This crew will report its findings to the state.
Newswatch 16 stopped by the site of another mine subsidence that happened Monday in Swoyersville. It was filled but is slightly still slightly sinking.
It has not been officially determined if any or all of these instances are related.
"Everybody's nervous. Nobody knows what to expect," said Harger.
The priority continues to be at Toby Creek in Luzerne to stop the flow of water underground.
Crews tell Newswatch 16 they will be back on Wednesday to see if the concrete made any progress toward a solution in Toby Creek.
The DEP released the following statement Tuesday night: "DEP continues to oversee the work to plug the subsidence in Toby Creek in Luzerne County. After observing some settling of the rock fill, contractors began grouting the subsidence to prevent water from entering the hole.
A separate mine subsidence opened [Monday] afternoon near 399 Hughes Street, Swoyersville. DEP BAMR responded immediately. The opening measured 12 ft by 12 ft at the surface and was open to a depth of 11 feet, undercutting a property line fence. DEP BAMR crews filled the subsidence within the hour with R-3 and R-4 rock to eliminate the hazard. Finishing work such as topsoil and seeding will occur at a later date.
DEP BAMR received a report of water coming out of a manhole behind the old Nesbitt Hospital in Kingston Borough, about 3 miles away from Toby Creek. DEP BAMR visited the site [Tuesday] morning. The water comes out of a manhole lid and then flows not far into a storm inlet, so there’s no flooding issue or hazard. The source of the water is not immediately known."