05-03-2025
'I don't know what to do': Chandler residents scrambling after mine collapse
CHANDLER, Ind. (WEHT) – As utility crews and workers with the Department of Natural Resources continue to assess the damage to the land in Chandler, residents in the area are packing up their belongings, moving out and wondering 'What's next?'
'I honestly don't know what to do right now,' says Chandler resident Terra Norman.
Homeowners like Norman are in a state of shock and confusion after underground mine subsidence takes place beneath their feet. Norman says, for the first time since the collapse, she has had moments to process the magnitude of what's happening.
'Definitely feeling different, more emotional and overwhelmed today,' explains Norman.
Cracks are visible along the perimeter of her home. The mine collapse is causing her home to tilt, showing unpainted bricks that were once under the surface. On the inside, bowing walls are putting a water line at risk.
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'The wall has shifted so much that it is laying against the pipe,' says Norman, 'and you can't even slide a business card in-between the pipe and the wall.'
Crews with the Town of Chandler and the Indiana State Department of Homeland Security went door-to-door to residents in the area of Monroe Avenue. Residents say they were told officials may work on a grant where the state would purchase their property and prevent future homes from being built on that land, if they are willing to sell. Emergency Management Director Michael Goebel sent the statement below to Eyewitness News.
– Michael Goebel, Warrick County EMA Director
Others are taking the opportunity to find a new place to live, taking advantage of mine subsidence insurance that most of the homeowners have purchased. 'It's kind of a waiting game to see what's going to happen insurance-wise, whose houses are total losses and whose are, you know, I think ours is right on the line,' says Norman.
Norman says she has had concerns in recent months of something like a mine collapse occurring and is conflicted on what her next move might be. 'Today, I'm like, okay, well, maybe it's not going to fall in,' says Norman. 'We'll be okay until we figure out what's going to happen. So I'm not sure if I should stay or go. I don't know what to do.'
Residents tell us they've been informed that it could be no sooner than 90 days before gas line repairs begin. That number could increase if ground unsettling persists. Michael Bell, Chandler Environmental Manager, says a DNR geologist will be on the scene Thursday March 6 to evaluate the ground.
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