Waterbury evening Democrat., 1904-08-12
GREAT COAL MINE FIRE
Extraordinary Effort to Extin- guish One In Pennsylvania.
soIENTIFIo METHODS ADOPTED.

Used For the Quenchinw of n Fire
 cite Coal Mine For the Past Fifty
 Years.
 A systematic effort to extinguish the greatest mine fire in the anthracite coal region was recently commenced by coal company which owns the Green wood mine near Tamaqua, Pa, says the Wilkesbarre correspondent of the New York Post The mine has been on fire for the past fifty years, and in all that time has not been worked. It still contains, so the mining experts chiefly in the Mammoth vein, which at this portion of the region is from thirty to sixty feet thick, and it is for this wealth of coal that the company has started fight which 1t is estimated will cost $1.0o0,0o0 and will take two years to win. Preparations to fight the fire have been under way for year. following careful survey of the work ings, the extent of the fire and the possibility of putting it out. All pre- vious efforts have been confined to spasmodic flooding of the burning DOT tion, which has not been effective.
 The mining officials have discovered that the fire is raging In the loose coal above the water level, that the great pillars of the Mammoth vein are still standing undamaged and that all the lower veins are intact, the millions of gallons of water which have from time to time been poured into the mine having saved the coal despite the fact that it had no other effect upon the fire than confining 1t to certain portion of the mine.
 The fight will be conducted from the mountain top above the highest levels of the workings, and not far from the spot where it is believed the fire start ed fifty years ago, when some timbers were ignited by miners lamp or the ignition of a gas feeder.
 A mixture of culrn and water will be the fire fighting agent. This not only smothers the fire wherever it reaches it, but hardens into mass almost as solid as coal, and forms a pillar which prevents the workings caving, It will have the valuable effect In this case of extinguishing the fire and filling up the fire eaten workings so that the adjoining pillars, which have support ed these workings, may be removed The company will thus gain great erwise be touched
 Four 100 horsepower boilers have been erected on the banks of the Schuylkill river and will operate two mammoth duplex pumps, which will pour into the mine 1,728, 900 gallons of water every day. This water will be carried 1,600 feet In ten inch pipes from the river to the top of the noun tain. There 1t will be turned into big troughs and mixed with immense quantities of the culm, which will be hauled by train from the Hauto culm banks six miles away, The mixed culm and water will then be run down deep shoots into the burning work ings.
 At the same time, at number of points over the fire, bore holes will be drilled from the surface. These will not only serve to locate the fire, but will also draw off the gases formed by the burning coal. which have been in such volume that they have held the water back from the fire.
 As one working after another is flushed with the culm and the fire ex- tinguished the long chutes down which the culm and water are washed will be moved to another working and the fire will Tn this manner be slowly but sure ly smothered. At the same time bar riers will be built in the mine to pre- vent the fire spreading to untouched portions. These barriers have been built from time to time, and many of them are still serviceable.
 When the fire is all out and the mine again ready to be worked the company will erect one of the largest breakers in the region, and the breaker and mine will give employment. to over thou sand men and boys.