Crime, Cover-up, or Conspiracy in Centralia, Pennsylvania? Part 2

This week we continue our coverage of the mine fire that has burned in rural Pennsylvania for over 60 years. Last week we covered the physics of a mine fire and the most widely accepted theory of how the fire started. This week in addition to covering the other theories of how the fire may have started, we also discuss the initial projects undertaken to control the fire. What went wrong? While it's easy to look in hindsight and see how certain missteps by government officials contributed to the disaster that destroyed an entire town, the question we seek to answer is whether or not any of those missteps constitute negligence. Did government officials make the best decisions they could given what they knew at the time? Join us as we returne to Centralia, Pennsylvania and pick apart all the theories from the perspective of a fire protection engineer. 

This podcast is a true crime podcast about arson and criminal fires. Listener discretion is recommended. 

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

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Source List:

For a full list of sources please see the show notes from Part 1. Additional sources used in the development of this episode are as follows: 

https://phys.org/news/2018-04-hydrogen-coal-fuel.html

https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/LI/consCheck.cfm?txtType=HTM&ttl=18&div=0&chpt=33

https://www.maxapress.com/article/doi/10.48130/emst-0024-0004

https://www.tnonline.com/20230812/60th-anniversary-sheppton-mine-disaster-a-tragedy-that-defined-an-era/