Iron Miners
It is currently Thu Mar 28, 2024 4:14 am

All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 5 posts ] 
Author Message
 Post subject: Ringwood Sink hole
PostPosted: Mon Jul 11, 2005 7:00 pm 
Offline

Joined: Mon Jul 11, 2005 6:40 pm
Posts: 1
Did anyone read The Record 7/11/05 about the sinkhole in the guys backyard?


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Jul 13, 2005 1:25 am 
Offline
Site Admin
User avatar

Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:28 pm
Posts: 1758
Location: Winnemucca, NV
Richie,

It also appeared on News Channel 4 which featured footage of the hole. Right after a resident mowed his lawn, the ground suddenly caved in in his backyard leaving a hole 20 feet in diameter which according to the report "continued to deepen". Most of the houses on the street are former miner's homes for the Ringwood Mines. What is interesting is that this happened right behind what appeared to be one of the miner's homes. This would suggest that if the sink hole were caused by a shaft (which it most definitely is), it is probably an older working that predated even the old house and its traces long obliterated.

Often times old shafts will plug up naturally with earth erosion and cribbing leaving nothing but a small depression on the surface with tailings nearby. The seemingly obvious sign of mining activity is ignored and is simply filled in for development. Eventually some 70 years later or more, this plug loosens and you are left with a deep shaft once again. Unfortunately these developers either have no common sense or simply don't care when they choose to ignore these signs. By the time construction begins over a mine, no one knew a mine ever existed there.

In the meantime, we will have to see how the Ringwood collapse story unfolds...

Miner Mike


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 12:35 am 
Offline
Site Admin

Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:33 pm
Posts: 3080
Location: Above the Sterling Hill Mine
Here is a link to the news report and video regarding the subsidence in Ringwood. Very interesting...

http://www.wnbc.com/news/4707179/detail.html


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Aug 17, 2005 4:04 pm 
Offline
Site Admin
User avatar

Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:28 pm
Posts: 1758
Location: Winnemucca, NV
This could actually be the remains of the Cooper Mine situated about 500 feet south of the Peters Mine. The mine was opened around the Civil War and abandoned in 1873. The house would have had to have been built sometime after but not necessarily long after. Evidence of former mining activity can disappear rather quickly, especially when people make them disappear by development. Just look at Mine Hill...

Miner Mike


Top
 Profile  
 
 Post subject:
PostPosted: Sun Aug 21, 2005 11:44 am 
Offline
Site Admin
User avatar

Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:28 pm
Posts: 1758
Location: Winnemucca, NV
According to a newspaper article sent in by Ginny Chucka (thanks again Ginny), geologists also believe this to be related to the Cooper Mine. They are still trying to determine the precise cause and will start drilling to make sure no more sink holes form.

The article goes on to state "When there's a subsidence (sinkhole) in a specific location of a mine, there's a potential for others maybe to occur along the vein of the mine" according to A. J. Sabath, deputy commissioner of the NJ Dept. of Labor. Unfortunately however, it is not that predictable. There are very specific reasons you see mines collapse like this. A single collapse does not set off a chain reaction and bring the whole mine down like he is inferring.

The article mentions that the "Cooper Mine Pit" was not deep and more like a strip mine as opposed to the 2400 deep Peters Mine. While we know it to have once had a surface excavation 80 feet long, 10 feet wide by 30 feet deep, it is not unthinkable to assume it also has shafts separate from this either to locate other veins or tap this vein further northeast where it is too deep to quarry on the surface.

I guess we will continue to watch as the story unfolds...

Miner Mike


Top
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 5 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Majestic-12 [Bot] and 43 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Search for:
Jump to:  
cron
Powered by phpBB © 2000, 2002, 2005, 2007 phpBB Group