Centralia, Pennsylvania, was a coal-mining ____ for more than 100 years. Every ____, the local fire department burned ____ at the town dump, but on May 27, 1962, something unexpected ____. The fire found its way ____ the abandoned mine pits ____ the town. A vein of coal underground caught ____, and firefighters worked tirelessly to drown the flames with ____. Despite their valiant efforts, the fire was never ____ extinguished. For the next 20 years, repeated efforts to ____ the great fire failed. Firefighters dug ____, flushed the pits with ____, and tried filling them with ash, but nothing ____. Every time it seemed the fire was under ____ or on the verge of going out, the flames erupted once ____. Over time, the ____ created public safety and health ____ for the residents of Centralia. Toxic fumes and ____ rose up into people's yards, homes, and ____. Families had to ____ their homes as the fumes and a gas called carbon ____ became life-threatening. In 1983, a study revealed that the fire could ____ continue to burn for a century or even ____. The federal government became involved, but there was ____ that officials could do by then. Studies show that the fire could ____ to over 3,800 acres and ____ other towns in the area. More than $40 million has been ____ as a result of this fire, but it keeps on burning under the almost-deserted ____. Fewer than a dozen people ____ to live in Centralia today.

The Endless Fire

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