In an northeastern Indian town , residents are dying of breathing disorders and skin diseases at alarming rates as underground fires that have raged for nearly a century continue to blanket the city in toxic smoke . The town of Jharia , in India 's northeastern Jharkhand province , plays host to more than 70 fires which have burned continuously beneath the earth 's surface since 1916 . Here the infernos have been left to burn unhindered following a coal mine collapse in the resource-rich region - which produced a blaze so intense authorities have balked for decades at the effort required to extinguish it . Villagers in Jharia , Jharkhand , warm themselves beside a fire made of coal scavenged from the vast mine . Miners work to repair a digger at the bottom of the open-cast mine , where fires have raged since 1916 . The underground fires are spewing toxic fumes across the town , causing respiratory and skin diseases . Women scavenge coal from the area as a permanent shroud of toxic emissions blanket the sky . A boy looks out over the mine which is eerily illuminated by the inferno raging beneath the earth 's crust . A group of women carry baskets of coal back to their village to sell . Many families are forced to earn a living in the dangerous area . The region is resource rich with an estimated 1.5billion tonnes of untouched coal sitting beneath the surface . Seven-year-old Soni ( centre ) and her mother Savita ( right ) carry baskets of coal on their heads with a friend . A man bathes in water which is in itself badly contaminated after spending several days scavenging coal . Fuelled by billions of dollars worth of coal lying under the surface , the fires cause sinkholes which twenty years ago swallowed 250 homes within four hours . Toxic fumes - which include poisons such as sulfur , sulfur , carbon and nitrogen oxides - are a part of everyday life where coal emissions are causing devastatingly high rates of breathing disorders and skin diseases among locals . Residents and children spend their days clamoring over the hot ground to eke out a living by chiseling out pieces of coal to sell at local markets . The first coal mine fire was detected in the area in 1916 and is believed to be due to a open cast mine not being correctly decommissioned . In the decades since , it has spread to become truly unmanageable . And despite repeated warnings that the town and surrounding area is on the brink of an ecological and humanitarian disaster , little has been done to help residents despite promises to move the entirety of the town . A boy on a bicycle watches the mining operation from a nearby hill . Miners attempt to repair a digger at the sprawling open-cast mine in northeastern India . The first coal mine fire was detected in the area in 1916 and is believed to be due to a open cast mine not being properly decommissioned . There have been repeated warnings that the area is on the brink of an ecological and humanitarian disaster . Flames emanate from the ground where beneath the surface , more than 70 fires have raged for decades . A truck laden with coal travels along a road in Bastacolla Colliery , in Jharia , Jharkhand . A young girl burns a pile of coal collected from the sprawling site . A boy poses for a photo while holding a huge lump of coal on his head . The government has promised to relocate locals away from the area , but this has yet to be done . A young girl covered in soot collects pieces of coal to sell at the local market . It is believed that if the remaining coal still sitting below the surface ( 1.5billion tonnes ) was to burn at a similar rate , the fires could last for another 3,800 years , Earth Magazine reported . Photographer Johnny Haglund visited the area last year for his award-winning photo project The Earth is on Fire and described feeling as though his skin was on fire . In spite of horrendous living conditions , he also witnessed children making their way through the area in bare feet in order to eke out a living from what coal they could salvage . He said : 'At the end of every day I had a layer of coal on my clothes and my skin and sometimes and I often felt like my face was burning , ' Wired reported . ' I had pretty heavy boots , but sometimes just walking around the soles almost melted off . ' I saw young kids - six or seven years old - carrying coal with no shoes on , breathing that air . It was terrible . ' A mining company employee sits down during his break at one of the area 's many coal depots . Flames from the underground fires burst through the surface as a local man watches from afar . Coal mine fires spew out from the ground . Having burned for nearly a century , the fires have been known to cause sinkholes that swallow villagers ' homes . It 's thought it would be possible to extinguish the fires , but there is a lack of political will . Locals load coal onto a bicycle at the coal mine , which supplies coking coal used in the production of steel . A villager shows his feet , which are blackened and covered in sores , caused by walking through the area .
The Indian town of Jharia sits above deadly underground coal mine fires . more than 70 fires beneath the town have raged uncontrollably since 1916 . They are causing breathing and skin diseases as well as huge sinkholes . Residents are forced to live on top of the fires in order to eke out a living .