Sinkholes
S


Arrow Down

Huge sinkhole opens up in Selly Oak, UK

Andy Richardson
Birmingham Mail
Thu, 24 Nov 2016 19:48 UTC
The damage to Harborne Lane Island
The damage to Harborne Lane Island
A huge sinkhole has opened up in Harborne Lane after a burst water mains disaster flooded Selly Oak.

Millions of gallons of water cascaded down the road and into surrounding streets, with many areas remaining shut to traffic until at least the weekend.

Harborne Lane will remain shut from the new roundabout at the junction of the A38 up to the petrol station just before the junction with Quinton Road.

A river of water surged down the roads yesterday after the water mains burst turning the area into a raging torrent.

Seven Trent Water said the pipe had now been switched off and the water drained but the the company was working on cleaning up and starting repairs.

There was a huge crater where the burst pipe was situated in Harborne Lane.
Read More...
Arrow Up

13-year-old escapes 20-foot-deep sinkhole in Lake Elsinore, California

Tony Shin
nbclosangeles.com
Mon, 21 Nov 2016 15:54 UTC
Sinkhole escape
Teenager nearly swallowed up by a sinkhole
A Southern California teen nearly swallowed up by a 20-foot-deep sinkhole in her front yard fought to crawl from the opening that caved in right under her Monday.

"All of a sudden I just fell down," 13-year-old Lake Elsinore resident Macayla Wittman said.

Surveillance video captured part of the struggle, with Macayla's legs visibly flailing as she fought to escape the well-like hole in her front yard on Pennsylvania street.

She was walking on her front yard when the ground gave way underneath her. But Macayla stopped her fall by grabbing onto the edge of the 3-foot-wide sinkhole.

Seconds later she climbed out shaken, but not hurt.

Read More...
Arrow Down

Large sinkhole opens up outside house in Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania

Alicia Nieves
wnep.com
Mon, 14 Nov 2016 18:21 UTC
Family fears sinkhole could swallow home
Family fears sinkhole could swallow home
A family in Schuylkill County has been forced out of their home after a giant hole opened up in their backyard.

The family says that massive hole opened within minutes on Saturday night, swallowing up most of their backyard. They worry the hole could widen and take their home.

On Saturday night, Tracey Quick and her husband heard odd noises coming from the backyard of their home on Park Place Road near Mahanoy City. Then they heard louder noises coming from the home.

"It started cracking. The whole house sounded like it was going to go. It was horrible," she said.

Quick woke up her three children and got them out of the home safely because that cracking sound was the foundation of the home shifting as the house began to lean as the backyard gave way. Her husband went into the backyard to check on the noise. He was standing in the area just two minutes before the ground gave way.

Read More...
Arrow Down

Sinkhole opens up in driveway of home in Toronto

Codi Wilson
CP24
Wed, 16 Nov 2016 18:14 UTC
A sinkhole has appeared in the driveway of an Upper Beaches home.
© Mike Nguyen/ CP24A sinkhole has appeared in the driveway of an Upper Beaches home.
A sinkhole has formed outside a home in the city's east end.

It happened in the driveway of a house on Golfview Avenue, in the area of Woodbine Avenue and Kingston Road.

A portion of the road has been closed as a result of the incident.
Read More...
Arrow Down

Large sinkhole swallows car in Newcastle, Australia

Ashleigh Davis
Daily Mail
Wed, 16 Nov 2016 12:09 UTC
The front part of a car has been completely swallowed up by a one-metre deep sinkhole after a water main break
The front part of a car has been completely swallowed up by a one-metre deep sinkhole after a water main break
A car has been swallowed up by a one-metre deep sinkhole after a water main break.

The incident happened on Albert Street in Wickham, a suburb of Newcastle in NSW, at 6am on Thursday morning, the Newcastle Herald reported.

The force of the rushing water in the burst water main deteriorated soil underneath the road, which then caused the ground to open up.

The burst water main also caused 38 homes in the vicinity to lose water.

Local resident Chris Wheatley told the Newcastle Herald he woke up this morning to see his neighbour's car stuck in a hole.

The car was reportedly still in the hole about 9am on Thursday, with its nose, two front wheels stuck, and the tail end still sitting on the road.

Read More...
Arrow Down

Massive sinkhole opens up on highway and swallows 5 cars in Algeria


The Watchers
Fri, 18 Nov 2016 11:26 UTC
Cars in sinkhole
A large sinkhole has opened up on a highway near Ben Aknoun, a commune of Algiers Province and a suburb of the city of Algiers in northern Algeria, on November 18, 2016. Five cars fell into the hole, injuring a total of 11 people.

According to the Nassim Bernaoui, Algerian Emergency Preparedness communications manager, the hole opened on the highway towards Ben Aknoun, near the city of Sahraoui.

Six people were injured and hospitalized according to initial assessment.

The hole is currently 4 meters (13 feet) long, 6 meters (19.7 feet) wide and 4 meters deep.

Read More...
Arrow Down

Sinkhole swallows car in Citrus County, Florida


ClickOrlando
Mon, 14 Nov 2016 20:07 UTC
sinkhole
A water main break in Citrus County caused a huge hole to open up on the road Monday.

The hole swallowed an entire car, according to the Citrus County Sheriff's Office. Pictures show the rear wheel sticking out from the water-filled hole.

sinkhole
Truman Boulevard in Beverly Hills was shut down while crews with Citrus County Road Maintenance worked to clean the area.

The water main is owned by Rolling Oaks, a private utility company, deputies said.

The vehicle's occupants were able to safely exit the car before it fully submerged.

The car was removed from the hole as of 4 p.m. Monday, but officials were still asking drivers to avoid the area.

Read More...
Arrow Down

Seven houses evacuated after huge sinkhole opens up in Ripon, UK


The Guardian
Thu, 10 Nov 2016 10:19 UTC
A huge sinkhole appeared behind a row of terrace houses in Yorkshire late yesterday evening
© Bendy PotterA huge sinkhole appeared behind a row of terrace houses in Yorkshire late yesterday evening
Seven houses have been evacuated after a sinkhole of unknown depth appeared in gardens in North Yorkshire.

Emergency crews were called to the 20-metre-wide (66ft) hole in Magdalen's Road, Ripon, on Tuesday night, fire and rescue service confirmed.

A spokesman said: "Two fire crews and an officer from Ripon attended a sinkhole that had appeared at the rear of two properties. There were no injuries but seven properties were evacuated.

"The hole measured approximately 20 metres by 10 metres, with an unknown depth.

Read More...
Arrow Down

30-foot-wide sinkhole swallows intersection in Ephrata, Pennsylvania

Ryan Robinson
Lancaster Online
Tue, 08 Nov 2016 19:05 UTC
30-foot-wide sinkhole swallows Ephrata intersection, forces evacuations
30-foot-wide sinkhole swallows Ephrata intersection, forces evacuations
A 30-foot-wide sinkhole more than 20 feet deep swallowed a street intersection in Ephrata and forced the evacuation of two apartment buildings on Tuesday.

At some point overnight Monday, a 12-inch water main pipe broke under the street at West Pine Street and Park Avenue, Ephrata police Sgt. Philip Snavely said. Water spewed out, eroding the surrounding soil.

A motorist around 5 a.m. blew out a tire when he struck a jagged dip in the roadway, Snavely said. He reported the sagging street and police closed the intersection to traffic.

Around 6 a.m., a large part of the intersection collapsed, taking part of the streets and sidewalks with it, he said.

"It took out the whole intersection," he said. No one was injured. The collapse also caused a natural gas line to sag, though it did not rupture. Firefighters were dispatched to help at the scene.


Sinkhole
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Massive sinkhole in Fukuoka disrupts traffic and causes blackout


RT
Tue, 08 Nov 2016 05:06 UTC
Fukuoka Sinkhole
© Akira Koga/YouTube
A gaping sinkhole in the middle of a road appeared next to a busy subway station in Japan, disrupting traffic and causing a local blackout. Emergency services expect the hole, which is dangerously close to the surrounding buildings, to expand.

The hellish pit opened in the middle of the road in Fukuoka, the capital of Japan's Fukuoka Prefecture, on Tuesday morning. The affected area is in the close vicinity of a subway station.

Multiple videos have emerged showing how the hole expanded.


Comment: Sinkholes: The groundbreaking truth

Read More...