It seems almost certain monks were to blame for the recent collapse of old mine workings on a housing estate in Kincardine in Fife.

A huge hole appeared outside homes in Riverside Terrace in the village about a fortnight ago, damaging the pavement and a water main.

Coal Authority engineers have been trying to repair the damage for several days now by pouring cement into the void to plug it.

Parts of the south of Fife are riddled with disused coal mines which can date back hundreds of years to the time of the monks.

They used to follow shallow seams of coal just a few metres beneath the surface, leaving a honeycomb of tunnels in some areas.

It is not the first such collapse in Fife—and it will not be the last, according to the Coal Authority.

It looks after the licensing of mines and took on the responsibilities of the former British Coal.

The authority has records of mineworkings dating back to 1872 but nothing beyond that.

Several years ago a council worker who was cutting the grass in a children’s playpark in Crossgates nearly disappeared when the ground gave way.

He was left clinging to a fence but managed to scramble clear.

The Coal Authority’s Thomas Currie, who is project managing the repair in Kincardine, insisted such collapses were not uncommon.

“I suppose there may be as many as 30 to 40 such incidents throughout Scotland each year,” he said.

“It is fair to say there are quite a lot of unrecorded mine workings in the area.

“There are some areas in Fife where it is more likely to occur because there has been mining in the region for many, many years.

“There’s probably been mining there for six or seven hundred years, a lot of which would have been carried out by monks.

“Having assessed the situation and determined the cause as shallow, unrecorded mineworkings we put into action a plan to stabilise the area with cement grout.”

A housing development has been proposed for a playing field opposite the area where the latest collapse occurred.

Mr Currie said if a developer was interested in a site it was up to them to investigate it.

The Coal Authority could provide them with a report but it was still up to the developer to assess that report and carry out further investigations and stabilisation if necessary.

Councillor Willie Ferguson, who represents west Fife and the coastal villages, told The Courier, “The Coal Authority took immediate action and everything has been done that can be done.”