The inspiration for the movie Silent Hill is a real town. Guys, this town in Pennsylvania has had underground mine fires burning beneath it for the past 43 years! Am I the only person who hasn't heard about Centralia? It started when a trash fire was lit in an abandoned mine pit in Centralia in 1962. The fire ignited an exposed vein of coal and spread throughout the mines beneath the borough. All attempts to extinguish this fire have been unsuccessful. In fact, early on the governement drilled holes to check temperatures which actually provided a source of oxygen to the fire. The associated gasses and network of rich coal veins continue to feed the flames.
The story didn’t catch national media attention until Febuary 14, 1981 when the ground collapsed under Todd Domboski. A sinkhole about 4 feet in diameter and 150 feet deep had opened under him. The heat or carbon monoxide would have been sufficient to kill him instantly if he'd fallen right in but he grabbed onto exposed tree roots and was pulled to safety by his cousin.
An engineering study concluded that the fire could burn for another century or more and "could conceivably spread over an area of approximately 3,700 acres."

http://www.offroaders.com/album/centralia/centralia.htm