Lightning Ridge | Coober Pedy | Queensland Coober Pedy The town of Coober Pedy was founded in 1915 and is inhabited by over 2500 citizens with many of them choosing to live underground in order to escape the searing heat, which can reach 50 degrees Celsius. The harsh desert conditions inspired the construction of a hospital to accommodate the many individuals often struck down by the heat. Additionally, the town also contains supermarkets, banks, post office, school and the worlds only underground shopping center along with a number of underground shops. In times gone by the area was once the prime producer of grey, milky and light opal with the majority being sold uncut. These days opal production in Coober Pedy has declined and production is now restricted to surrounding areas. Coober Pedy is a landscape dotted with mine shafts and large open cuts. When working in mine shafts blowers and bucket elevators are used in conjunction with tunneling machines to bring the mullock to the surface. Open cut mines use bulldozers and excavators to create the cut in known opal bearing ground. Spotters are used to walk behind the bulldozer using picks and screwdrivers to find the seam opal. An overhead view of part of the town. A typical sight at Coober Pedy where some of the homes are dug into the hillsides. This machine is a blower; it removes dirt like a huge vacuum cleaner. Most people live underground in Coober Pedy.