Monday, April 27, 2015

ABANDONED COAL MINE SINKHOLES UNPREDICTABLE, HARD TO DETECT





APRIL 26, 2015

YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO (WKBN)

Throughout the region, sinkholes have opened up from abandoned coal mines. It brings into question home insurance limitations and property disclosure for the current homeowners and anyone else who may purchase property.

The Mahoning Valley is dotted with hundreds of abandoned coal mines. WKBN studios sit on top of one of them. Ann Harris, retired geology professor with Youngstown State University, said many homeowners don’t know they may be on top of a mine because property searches only go back 50 years. And even if a mine is filled and covered, this is no guarantee is will stay sealed.

“Since you usually had some material on top of it, one minute it is solid then all of a sudden the timbers would go and you would have a big hole,” Harris said.

One such hole opened up last summer on Route 170 in Petersburg. Harris said most of the mines are over 100 years old, so any information about coal leases or even if there was a mine on a property may not make it into a title search.

If you live in Columbiana, Mahoning and Trumbull counties, your property insurance will cover damage from mine subsidence. It could be listed on your policy as sinkhole insurance, but it is the same thing as mine subsidence.
Source: http://wkbn.com