The Laurel Run mine fire is an underground mine fire near the communities of Laurel Run and Georgetown, in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The fire started burning in 1915 at the Red Ash Coal Mine. Attempts to control it lasted from 1915 to 1957 and recommenced in 1966. In the 1960s, the United States government and the Pennsylvania state government became involved in containing the fire. Attempts at stopping the spread of the fire were erroneously declared successful in 1973, and the fire is still burning. Start of the fire and early history The Laurel Run mine fire began on December 6, 1915, in the Red Ash Coal Mine. A miner accidentally left a carbide lamp hanging from a timber support, which caught fire. Because of the lack of a night watchman, the fire went unnoticed for the entire weekend. When it was noticed after work resumed the following week, attempts were made to block off its air supply by pouring sand in the area and filling the openings of the mine with concrete. The mine's owners then stated that the fire was under control. By 1921, it became evident that the mine fire had persisted and spread. The company operating the mine began placing temporary barriers to stop the spread of the fire so that the rest of the mine could continue to be worked. Mining in the area ended in 1957. At this point attempts to stop the spread of the fire also ceased. Later history Over the years, the Laurel Run site became known as 'the burning mountain' because of smoke vented from a number of fissures leading to the abandoned underground works. In September 1962, a number of residents of the nearby community of Laurel Run were forced to abandon their homes due to subsidence (due to removal of the mine's pillars in the area) and fumes from the mine fire. The pillars were columns of anthracite coal that were left to support the ground above the mine. Legitimate miners would "rob" them through mining when they couldn't otherwise meet their coal quotas, and "outlaw" miners, not affiliated with a given mine, would subsequently rob them as well when the mines were closed. The resulting subsidence at the surface could cause dangerous sink holes. The community at this point became aware of the presence of an uncontrolled mine fire in the area. In