Sinkholes
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Fire engine rescued from 15-foot deep sinkhole in Brooklyn, New York

Lorena Mongelli and Antonio Antenucci
NYPost
Wed, 22 Apr 2015 12:36 UTC
A fire engine had to be rescued in Brooklyn on Tuesday.
Image
© NYPost/Paul Martinka
The stuck truck was parked on the street outside Brookdale Hospital in East Flatbush when a 15-foot-deep sinkhole opened up and swallowed its front right wheel around noon.

About a dozen firefighters stacked pieces of wood near the tire of the Engine Co. 257 truck to keep it from sinking deeper into Rockaway Parkway.

But one of the planks then sprang out and hit two of the emergency responders.

Both were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. Puzzlingly, they were taken to Kings County Hospital instead of being treated at Brook­dale. Authorities could not immediately explain why.

FDNY Chief Stephen Moro of Division 15 said it's unclear what caused the sinkhole. "This is an odd one," Moro said.

A few hospital workers who witnessed the incident said it was frightening.

"It's scary because they just [repaved] this street after putting in new pipes," said Paulie Johnson, who works in the security office at Brookdale's Urgent Care Center. "It looks good from the surface, but we don't know what's underneath."
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Beer

Forty by twenty feet wide sinkhole opens in Marietta, Georgia; swallows trees


Athens Banner Herald
Wed, 22 Apr 2015 15:21 UTC
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A 20-foot sinkhole in suburban Atlanta swallowed trees and threatened businesses.

WSB-TV reported the hole opened on private property in Marietta, about 80 miles west of Athens.

City workers say a loose connection between two pipes rusted and water rushed out, causing the hole to open. They estimate it is 40 by 20 feet wide.

The sinkhole is close to the street and several businesses.

City officials said on Monday that crews planned to work through the day to make repairs.
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Man injured after falling into sinkhole in Buffalo


twcnews.com
Sun, 19 Apr 2015 13:53 UTC
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Sinkhole
A man was injured Sunday after a sinkhole formed underneath him while he was walking.

Take a look at this video.


A city engineering employee says the man was walking across High Street when he fell into a hole that formed around him.

He was taken to ECMC for treatment.

No word on how serious his injuries were.

Crews are covering the sinkhole with a metal plate for the time being.
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Attention

Sinkhole scare: Mysterious giant crater emerges in Novokuznetsk region of Siberia


RT
Mon, 20 Apr 2015 18:29 UTC
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© RIA Novosti/Press-servis governor Yamal-NeneA view of a giant crater discovered in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug.
A fresh giant crater has appeared in Siberia's Novokuznetsk region. Measuring 20 meters in diameter and up to 30 meters in depth, the hole is unnerving the local population, who fear the next one might swallow their homes.

The mysterious sinkhole was first spotted by Rinat Sharifullin, a local man whose house is a mere 100 meters away from where it emerged. He blames the sagging of earth into abandoned mine tunnels snaking beneath the ground in the area.

"We have to get out of here", Rinat's wife Natalia told local media. "There are mines under our garden, closed down in the 1990s."
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Shoe

Firetruck hits sinkhole in Richmond, Virginia

Shawn Maclauchlan
NBC12.com
Thu, 16 Apr 2015 09:44 UTC
Image
© NBC12
A firetruck is stuck near the intersection of Noble and Rennie avenues after the back tire hit a sinkhole.

Engine 14 was out checking for street closures Thursday morning after a water main break on Wednesday when the accident happened. A tow truck is on the way.

No one was injured in the accident. The extent of the damage to the engine will not be known until they remove the vehicle.
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US: Sinkhole closes highway in California


Ventura County Star
Wed, 15 Apr 2015 15:43 UTC
Image
© Rob Varela
One lane of Highway 118 in Saticoy is expected to remain closed until Thursday as crews work to repair a sinkhole in the area, officials said Tuesday.

The sinkhole, about 5 feet deep and 10 feet wide, was caused by a leak from a reinforced concrete drainage pipe joint, according to Caltrans.

Caltrans officials said water inside the pipe will be removed, the break will be patched and the void will be filled with concrete slurry.

Comment: For a look at the 58 sinkholes that have opened up in the past month, around the globe, check out SOTT Worldview:



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Sinkhole opens up on interstate, delays traffic in Virginia


WHSV
Mon, 13 Apr 2015 13:56 UTC
Sinkhole
© UnknownSinkhole closes portion of Interstate 81
A sinkhole is causing traffic delays on Interstate 81 northbound at mile marker 284 in Shenandoah County. The left travel lane is closed.

This location is between exit 283 at Route 42 in Woodstock and exit 291 at Route 651 in the Toms Brook area.

A contractor will arrive at the site tonight and will begin excavating the hole. Once the excavation begins, the size of the hole and stability of the surrounding ground will be evaluated. The sinkhole will be back-filled. Once the sinkhole is repaired the road will be repaved at the repair site and then opened to traffic.

Comment: For a sample of the many sinkholes opening up around the world, check out:
  • Sinkhole opens up in New Castle, Pennsylvania
  • Sinkholes continue to plague Mississippi town
  • Sinkhole opens beneath garbage truck in East Hampton, New York


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Sinkholes close traffic in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann
Lehigh Valley Live
Mon, 13 Apr 2015 13:52 UTC
SInkhole
© Pamela Sroka-Holzmann / LehighValleyLive.comA large sinkhole opened up April 11, 2015 on Johnston Drive in Bethlehem.
Public works, water and sewer crews plan to spend most of this week repairing a significant sinkhole on Johnston Drive between Center and Linden streets in Bethlehem.

Mike Alkhal, city public works director, said a teenager noticed the sinkhole in the westbound lane Saturday and called 911. Neighbors say the teenager directed traffic around the sinkhole.

The sinkhole is in front of a vacant home for sale in the 400 block of Johnston Drive. The home has a smaller sinkhole in front of its front steps. Another small sinkhole is on a neighboring property owned by Nancy Sigley. The entire perimeter of all three sinkholes is blocked off with yellow tape.

Comment: See also:
  • Sinkhole opens up in Longview, Texas - closes streets
  • Door to Hell: Blazing sinkhole opens in Chinese village
  • Colorado: Sinkhole closes county road


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Sinkhole opens up in Longview, Texas - closes streets

Jimmy Isaac
KYTX CBS 19
Sat, 11 Apr 2015 14:36 UTC
Sinkhole
© Unknown
A sinkhole on one of Longview busiest roads is delaying traffic.

The 2 1/2 foot wide, 3 foot deep hole is in the outside northbound lane of the 1600 block of Judson Road, between Iris Circle and Montclair Street. Longview police and street crews are on the scene, barricading the lane and waiting to fix the problem.

Judson Road handles more than 17,000 cars a day.

Comment: More than 70 sinkholes have opened up around the globe in just the past week, including one that locals said 'leads straight to hell'.



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Door To Hell: Blazing sinkhole opens in Chinese village


RT
Fri, 10 Apr 2015 05:44 UTC

A blazing sinkhole in northwest China terrified locals, attracting tourists as well as researchers and prompting questions about its origin. The temperature on top of the burning crater was estimated to be 792 degrees Celsius (1,457 degrees Fahrenheit).

blazing sinkhole
© GooNooNewsScreenshot from YouTube user GooNooNews
Due to the deadly heat, scientists have been unable to come close enough to the crater to measure how deep it really is. Located in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, near Urumqi, in northwest China, the sinkhole is 0.9 meters (3 feet) wide.

It is hot enough to light up branches and other objects placed next to it. Various tourist videos show people setting things on fire.

Locals have dubbed it a "gateway to hell." Many have told the Chinese media that the ground in the area has been hot for some time now.

There is no volcanic activity in the region, which led scientists from the Xinjiang Meitian Geological Bureau to believe that the sinkhole was created out of coal seam spontaneously combusting.

The area was reportedly used for mining in the 1970s, China Central TV cited a supervisor from Xinjiang Meitian Fire Engineering Bureau, Chen Long, as saying, the Daily Mail reported.

Comment: Mining companies usually neglect protecting the environment for financial reasons. It's cheap to leave Nature dying after taking all mineral resources. The first thing you notice is dust in the air causing disease in humans and animals. Water aquifers get depleted, because the mine pumps too much water to clean the coal and that results in the groundwater and Artesian wells drying out.
Coal-fired power plants, which produce almost half of the country's electricity, have significant impacts on water quantity and quality in the United States. Water is used to extract, wash, and sometimes transport the coal; to cool the steam used to make electricity in the power plant; and to control pollution from the plant. The acts of mining and burning coal, as well as dealing with the waste, also can have major effects on water quality


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