Sinkhole as big as a house opens in Florida neighborhood and keeps growing, county says
A large sinkhole is continuing to grow in a Florida neighborhood, prompting government officials to close a nearby road and warn three homeowners evacuation may be required, according to officials.
It appeared June 8 on private property along Scott Lake Road in Lakeland, about 35 miles northeast of Tampa.
“The sinkhole is currently around 75 feet in diameter and slowly growing,” Polk County officials said.
“The Polk County Sheriff’s Office rendered aid in blocking access and directing traffic away from the unstable area. Polk County Fire Rescue arrived on scene to aid in assessing the threat to structure and safety.”
A large section of Scott Lake Road has been blocked between between Old Scott Lake Road and Fitzgerald Road, officials said.
Investigators said the hole appeared after a drilling company “hit a pressurized pocket.”
The drilling project was an attempt to dig a well, and when the crew reached 180 feet “they broke through something, a hard layer, and then it was pretty much a void down to, like, 300 feet,” county officials said in a news conference posted on Facebook by WFLA.
Depressions in the surrounding ground began to occur soon after, officials said.
No structural damage has been reported by homeowners in the immediate area, officials said. The hole does not pose a threat to Scott Lake Road, but it was closed because the vibration caused by passing traffic might speed the collapse, officials said.
Because it is on private property, the homeowner is leading efforts to stabilize the hole, officials said. A permanent fix would likely require creating something akin to a support column beneath the pit, then filling the hole with soil to stabilize the sides, officials said.
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