Superfund residents fear lives will come crashing down
Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2006 10:45 pm
Oklahomans with homes threatened by mine cave-ins want government buyouts
By ARNOLD HAMILTON / The Dallas Morning News
PICHER, Okla. – Someday, without warning, the earth could open up and swallow hundreds of homes, businesses and roads – even the local school.
It's not the stuff of science fiction. It's a chilling reality in the heart of one of America's worst environmental disasters, the Tar Creek Superfund zone.
A federal study released recently identified nearly 300 sites in the 43-square-mile, northeastern Oklahoma area that are ripe for cave-ins above long-abandoned lead and zinc mines.
On Tuesday, city workers were putting a fence around Reunion Park, closed by the Town Council this week after it was given a 50-50 chance of collapse.
The council also voted to place warning signs and weight restrictions on 15 streets in danger of collapsing.
The report also brought new calls for a federal buyout of several thousand remaining residents, many of whom blame lead poisoning for a raft of health woes, from cancer to learning disabilities.
"We've got to do something," said John Sparkman, a lifelong resident who directs the local housing authority. "You can't play Russian roulette on this."
Even the scientists who carried out the 18-month study conceded their assessments were "conservative," hinting the threat could be worse than anyone knows.
It is impossible to be more precise, the expert said, because mining maps often are missing or incomplete and underground investigations are hampered by toxic water filling the caverns and shafts.
Further, independent miners – known as gougers – worked the area for up to a decade after most mines closed, often blasting pillars and otherwise weakening mine roofs in their quest to extract metals overlooked earlier.
Long opposed to a voluntary federal buyout, U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., said the new report makes clear that the "relocation" of some residents is necessary – and should be done soon.
The study, led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, identified more than 200 families whose residences sit atop – or within 150 feet of – abandoned caverns or tunnels.
Last year, a $3 million state buyout led to the demolition of 40 homes and the evacuation of 186 adults and children in the Superfund zone that includes Picher, Cardin, Hockerville and Quapaw.
Call for action
"The lead [contamination] should have been enough to get us out of here, but it wasn't," said semi-retired electrician Gary Garrett, whose Cardin residence is on the new report's danger list.
"Now that we've done the study, the federal government's in a position where they've almost got to get the people out of this area."
Armed with the new evidence of danger, federal and state officials predict a swift response – but what kind and by whom?
"The state also has a responsibility," said Mr. Inhofe. "We are all in this together."
Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry, who won funding for the recent state buyout, said he believes relocation costs are the responsibility of the federal government, adding, "I want to work with the senator and hopefully develop a federal program to deal with that."
Even so, federal, state and local officials expect to begin working soon on possible solutions, hoping to wrap up a plan within a few months.
As chairman of the Senate's Environment and Public Works Committee, Mr. Inhofe secured funds for the 18-month subsidence task force that included experts from the U.S. Geological Survey, the Interior Department and Bureau of Indian Affairs, plus such state agencies as the Oklahoma Geological Survey and Department of Environmental Quality.
Their report, made public at a standing room-only town hall meeting at the Picher-Cardin High School gymnasium two weeks ago, confirmed the worst fears of local residents: They could be sitting atop dozens of giant sinkholes in the making.
Not an exact science
The study identified 286 sites where mine caverns and shafts could collapse – roughly 88 acres out of 4,400 reviewed. Endangered: 162 occupied residences, 18 businesses, 16 public-use facilities including churches and playgrounds, and at least 33 locations beneath or near major transportation corridors.
Still, it's possible the numbers do not tell a complete story: No mining maps could be located for Quapaw, for example, leaving experts clueless about the potential danger in that town of about 1,000. Moreover, experts were left to guess about the damage left by independent miners whose work was unreported.
"What we cannot tell you is when a mine will collapse," said Mark Becker, a U.S. Geological Survey hydrologist.
"There are still some things we don't know."
Mine cave-ins here have occurred sporadically for more than three decades. The most recent significant one – last spring, just south of Picher – has some worried that the town's major artery, U.S. Highway 69, could be in danger.
State highway crews are drilling alongside the highway, assessing its safety. Already, heavier trucks have been diverted to an alternate route.
As they digest the Corps of Engineers' report, some locals said they would not be surprised if school bus routes were also altered for safety.
Still, the vast majority of the 286 danger sites have a one-in-five – or lower – probability of caving in, the report said. At least 11 other sites, however, have a 50-50 or better chance of collapsing, including one that encompasses the park closed this week.
Ready to leave
Not everyone in the Tar Creek area wants a buyout. Some insist they believe the threats – whether from lead poisoning or sinkholes – are overstated. But they were clearly outnumbered at the meeting last week that filled every available seat in the high school gym and that was attended by more than 600 people.
Twice, during a question-and-answer period, residents at the microphone asked the assembled how many favored a buyout. Twice, it appeared three-fourths of the crowd would welcome such an escape.
"The time for study is over – get us out," said Ron Barr, a local minister. "There's not enough money ... you cannot fix all that's underground."
Picher resident Patsy Huffman worries the day is near when she will need to sell her home because of her husband's failing health.
"Who's going to buy my home?" she asked. "Nobody."
With their children raised, Mr. Garrett, a semi-retired electrician, and his wife, Linda, moved back to the Tar Creek area – where both were raised – in 1985. The couple, he said, built a 2,400-square-foot, three-bedroom home with in-ground swimming pool – unaware of the Superfund designation two years earlier.
Indeed, he said, it wasn't until about six years ago that many residents began to clamor for a buyout, finally recognizing the health dangers of living in a Superfund site where blood lead levels in children are as much as 11 times the state average.
"The people that lived here all their lives ... knew there was a lot of underground caverns," said Mr. Garrett, who operates a self-storage business in nearby Commerce. "How big, how deep – we didn't know.
"I don't see how anybody could be surprised at how it worked out. We knew it needed to be done. This is the first time since we started this ... that I'm pretty optimistic there will be a buyout."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
By ARNOLD HAMILTON / The Dallas Morning News
PICHER, Okla. – Someday, without warning, the earth could open up and swallow hundreds of homes, businesses and roads – even the local school.
It's not the stuff of science fiction. It's a chilling reality in the heart of one of America's worst environmental disasters, the Tar Creek Superfund zone.
A federal study released recently identified nearly 300 sites in the 43-square-mile, northeastern Oklahoma area that are ripe for cave-ins above long-abandoned lead and zinc mines.
On Tuesday, city workers were putting a fence around Reunion Park, closed by the Town Council this week after it was given a 50-50 chance of collapse.
The council also voted to place warning signs and weight restrictions on 15 streets in danger of collapsing.
The report also brought new calls for a federal buyout of several thousand remaining residents, many of whom blame lead poisoning for a raft of health woes, from cancer to learning disabilities.
"We've got to do something," said John Sparkman, a lifelong resident who directs the local housing authority. "You can't play Russian roulette on this."
Even the scientists who carried out the 18-month study conceded their assessments were "conservative," hinting the threat could be worse than anyone knows.
It is impossible to be more precise, the expert said, because mining maps often are missing or incomplete and underground investigations are hampered by toxic water filling the caverns and shafts.
Further, independent miners – known as gougers – worked the area for up to a decade after most mines closed, often blasting pillars and otherwise weakening mine roofs in their quest to extract metals overlooked earlier.
Long opposed to a voluntary federal buyout, U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., said the new report makes clear that the "relocation" of some residents is necessary – and should be done soon.
The study, led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, identified more than 200 families whose residences sit atop – or within 150 feet of – abandoned caverns or tunnels.
Last year, a $3 million state buyout led to the demolition of 40 homes and the evacuation of 186 adults and children in the Superfund zone that includes Picher, Cardin, Hockerville and Quapaw.
Call for action
"The lead [contamination] should have been enough to get us out of here, but it wasn't," said semi-retired electrician Gary Garrett, whose Cardin residence is on the new report's danger list.
"Now that we've done the study, the federal government's in a position where they've almost got to get the people out of this area."
Armed with the new evidence of danger, federal and state officials predict a swift response – but what kind and by whom?
"The state also has a responsibility," said Mr. Inhofe. "We are all in this together."
Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry, who won funding for the recent state buyout, said he believes relocation costs are the responsibility of the federal government, adding, "I want to work with the senator and hopefully develop a federal program to deal with that."
Even so, federal, state and local officials expect to begin working soon on possible solutions, hoping to wrap up a plan within a few months.
As chairman of the Senate's Environment and Public Works Committee, Mr. Inhofe secured funds for the 18-month subsidence task force that included experts from the U.S. Geological Survey, the Interior Department and Bureau of Indian Affairs, plus such state agencies as the Oklahoma Geological Survey and Department of Environmental Quality.
Their report, made public at a standing room-only town hall meeting at the Picher-Cardin High School gymnasium two weeks ago, confirmed the worst fears of local residents: They could be sitting atop dozens of giant sinkholes in the making.
Not an exact science
The study identified 286 sites where mine caverns and shafts could collapse – roughly 88 acres out of 4,400 reviewed. Endangered: 162 occupied residences, 18 businesses, 16 public-use facilities including churches and playgrounds, and at least 33 locations beneath or near major transportation corridors.
Still, it's possible the numbers do not tell a complete story: No mining maps could be located for Quapaw, for example, leaving experts clueless about the potential danger in that town of about 1,000. Moreover, experts were left to guess about the damage left by independent miners whose work was unreported.
"What we cannot tell you is when a mine will collapse," said Mark Becker, a U.S. Geological Survey hydrologist.
"There are still some things we don't know."
Mine cave-ins here have occurred sporadically for more than three decades. The most recent significant one – last spring, just south of Picher – has some worried that the town's major artery, U.S. Highway 69, could be in danger.
State highway crews are drilling alongside the highway, assessing its safety. Already, heavier trucks have been diverted to an alternate route.
As they digest the Corps of Engineers' report, some locals said they would not be surprised if school bus routes were also altered for safety.
Still, the vast majority of the 286 danger sites have a one-in-five – or lower – probability of caving in, the report said. At least 11 other sites, however, have a 50-50 or better chance of collapsing, including one that encompasses the park closed this week.
Ready to leave
Not everyone in the Tar Creek area wants a buyout. Some insist they believe the threats – whether from lead poisoning or sinkholes – are overstated. But they were clearly outnumbered at the meeting last week that filled every available seat in the high school gym and that was attended by more than 600 people.
Twice, during a question-and-answer period, residents at the microphone asked the assembled how many favored a buyout. Twice, it appeared three-fourths of the crowd would welcome such an escape.
"The time for study is over – get us out," said Ron Barr, a local minister. "There's not enough money ... you cannot fix all that's underground."
Picher resident Patsy Huffman worries the day is near when she will need to sell her home because of her husband's failing health.
"Who's going to buy my home?" she asked. "Nobody."
With their children raised, Mr. Garrett, a semi-retired electrician, and his wife, Linda, moved back to the Tar Creek area – where both were raised – in 1985. The couple, he said, built a 2,400-square-foot, three-bedroom home with in-ground swimming pool – unaware of the Superfund designation two years earlier.
Indeed, he said, it wasn't until about six years ago that many residents began to clamor for a buyout, finally recognizing the health dangers of living in a Superfund site where blood lead levels in children are as much as 11 times the state average.
"The people that lived here all their lives ... knew there was a lot of underground caverns," said Mr. Garrett, who operates a self-storage business in nearby Commerce. "How big, how deep – we didn't know.
"I don't see how anybody could be surprised at how it worked out. We knew it needed to be done. This is the first time since we started this ... that I'm pretty optimistic there will be a buyout."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.