Todd Domboski made both local, and national headlines in 1981 when he fell into a hole in Centralia Pennsylvania..
While the mine fire was already burning for decades and statewide attention was on the town, this single event propelled Centralia into a national and even global spotlight..
And now for the bad news…
From the obituary, the death was sudden and there will be no viewing.
DOMBOSKI — Todd K. Domboski, 53, of Altoona. At Todd’s request, there will be no viewing. A celebration of Todd’s life and time to gather and share will be held Saturday, Feb. 19, from 10 a.m. to noon in the C. J. Lucas Funeral Home Inc., 27 N. Vine St., Mount Carmel 17851, C. J. Lucas IV, supervisor. Burial will be private and held at the convenience of the family. To send condolences to the family please visit www.cjlucasfuneralhome.com.
THE BOY WHO FELL INTO THE HOLE
The story almost becomes an ironic tale .. A the exact moment that Representative James Nelligan and Senator Ed Helfrick were meeting with residents at the municipal hall, history was being made just blocks away!
Todd Domboski was 12 in February 1981 when he made national and global headlines for falling into a hole in Centralia.
Todd and a then teenage cousin Eric Wolfgang were fixing a motorcycle near his grandmother’s house at 131 Locust Ave in Centralia when they noticed some steam coming from the yard.. They went to check because they thought someone had thrown a match and it caught fire.. Suddenly the ground Todd was standing on opened under his feet and he fell in..
Todd’s account in news publications at the time sounds haunting:
The Philadelphia Inquirer called it a “Valentine’s Day flirt with death.” Gases were billowing up, he was terrified, and he grabbed on to a tree root above his head.. Eric Wolfgang was able to pull him out of the hole.
Todd even made the front page of the LA TIMES…
At that point in mine fire history, which began in 1962, more than $3.5 was already spent on various ideas to try quelling the underground blaze. All efforts failed and residents began to feel anger at state and federal officials..
The hole that Todd fell into was recorded at 350 degrees. The depth was unknown..
Days after Todd Domboski’s incident, Governor Dick Thornburgh toured Centralia, along with the hole that Domboski was almost swallowed up into. As a result of that visit, Thornburgh gave temporary housing to three families whose homes were determined to be unsafe due to the mine fire..
1981 would look tame compared to the rest of the roaring 80s. By the end of the decade, Centralia was quickly vanishing with only several holdouts remaining. Many died and left during the 90s..
Today the town is vacant, with trees now towering high above were homes once were. Remnants of sidewalks are still littered around.. But Graffiti Highway as a tourist attraction is just a memory.
Also covered and abandoned was the hole that Todd Domboski fell into during that cold, cripsy and sunny February day in 1981..
We hope that Todd Domboski finds peace beyond this earthly realm.. May he rest in peace..
