GLEN LYON, Pa. — All week long, crews from the Department of Environmental Protection have worked to backfill this mine subsidence it happened Sunday behind these apartments in the Glen Lyon section of Newport Township.
"This site has a history of mine subsidence, it happened in the 1980's there were small holes that opened up in the early 2000s, smaller crevices if you will. We are familiar with that site," said Colleen Connolly, PA Department of Environmental Protection.
What started as a gaping hole is now filled to the top with limestone rock from a nearby quarry.
The weather allowed the work to stay on schedule. Now that the subsidence is filled, the DEP will monitor any settling that may happen.
Officials say it had to truck in 7,000 tons of rock to fill the hole, "It's more than we anticipated but we were ready for that, we had a contractor on hand, we had a contractor on hand, we wanted to fill the hole as efficiently as possible and making sure the subsidence has a minimal chance of happening again," said Connolly.
Even though the hole is filled, DEP will keep a close eye on the subsidence in the months to come allowing the site to go through a freeze-thaw cycle.
"It's letting nature take its course really. Letting the rock settle naturally. Letting the rock feel the elements of the snow, ice, rain, freeze, and thawing out to see if there is any movement inside the hole and allow us to go in and see if we need to replace any additional rock," explained Connolly.
Four of the apartment units remain condemned. The Luzerne County Housing Authority will have to evaluate the building for any structural damage before residents can possibly return.
The DEP says mine subsidence insurance helped to cover most of the cost of the $200,000 project.
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