ARCHBALD, LACKAWANNA CO. (WOLF) — Rescue crews responded after a 64-year-old man fell about 40 feet into the Archbald Pothole and was reported injured, according to dispatch information.
The man was on a ledge inside the pothole and was alert, dispatchers reported. Crews brought in a 24-foot ladder and set up ropes to reach him. Two rescuers went over the edge during the operation.
Eynon/Sturges Hose Company No. 3 and Archbald Community Ambulance and Rescue Squad were assisted by Mayfield Rescue 59 and Wilson Fire Company No. 1. The man’s condition and the outcome of the rescue were not available in the information provided.
The pothole is a glacial feature formed during the last ice age. The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources says it was discovered in 1884 by coal miner Patrick Mahon, who encountered it while extending a mine shaft. After explosives were set off, water and stones rushed into the shaft. Workers later removed an estimated 800 to 1,000 tons of rounded stones, exposing the pothole. It became a tourist attraction in the late 1800s.
Today, the pothole is the centerpiece of Archbald Pothole State Park. DCNR describes it as about 38 feet deep and measuring roughly 42 by 24 feet across.