Illinois homeowner feels underground mine is splitting her house in two

BELLEVILLE, Ill. (KTVI) – About 330,000 homes in Illinois sit on top of old abandoned mines. And some say their homes are sinking because of it.

Concerns in one Illinois town are growing after a news of a grandmother in Pennsylvania who is believed to have fallen into a sinkhole while looking for her cat. The sinkholes in that area had formed because of an old coal mine, a police spokesperson said.

Shanee Carpenter, of Belleville, Illinois, told Nexstar's KTVI she fears what's happening under her house, too. She’s lived in the home for decades without problems, but cracks suddenly started showing up this past year, making it feel like her house is going to split in half.

In her basement, water pours from an unknown source through cavernous cracks.

“When I go down there to do laundry, I’m like, 'Oh Lord, protect me, Lord,'” she said.

Visible on walls and near windows are inch-and-a-half gaps in spots — enough to stick your hand into. Daylight can be seen in some areas. It’s an easy entrance for creatures to enter her basement.

The ground is also sloping, even in areas with no cracking. One of her back doors will no longer latch because of it.

“It’s just a matter of time before my house, God forbid, that it caves in," Carpenter said.

Carpenter is one of about a dozen homeowners experiencing sudden foundation cracks near the site of the now-closed Ruler Foods grocery store on North Belt West. That store closed after reports of possible mine subsidence (caving in) in September 2023.

At the time, Fire Chief Stephanie Mills told KTVI that three homes were evacuated as well "out of an abundance of caution."

Belleville’s mayor says the grocery store remains closed with no official plans to reopen and that the utility construction work seen nearby is related to mine subsidence. Near the site, the Illinois American Water utility company was seen installing new water lines, which are more durable and can better withstand ground movement, the company said.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is monitoring what’s happening in the area, according to the fire department. KTVI spoke to five other homeowners off camera, and only two of them described recent foundation cracking, but nothing like Carpenter’s.

“It’s hard to imagine that, looking at your house gradually falling apart … and there’s nothing you could do," Carpenter said.

Carpenter has taken additional steps, like calling the Illinois Mine Subsidence Insurance Fund. During our interview, two inspectors were checking out how her damages have grown.

“His opinion is that it’s safe to stay here," Carpenter said an inspector told her.

A spokesperson for the fund told KTVI it can sometimes take years to track mine-related damages before there’s action. Residents of Illinois, meanwhile, can use the agency's website to learn more about at-risk homes.