Nature
PUBLISHED
In 2013, a man suddenly disappeared after a sinkhole opened right beneath him in the middle of the night. His family heard a loud bang and then a scream, running in to find that Jeff Bush, 37, was gone.
The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.The sinkhole took in gravel and debris, and was filled in before returning a few years later. The sinkhole, located at 240 Faithway Drive in Seffner, was fenced off by authorities and residents continue to live in houses surrounding it, but it has now opened again.
Fire service and deputies were called to the area at 4.30 pm on Monday, according to local media outlets, and engineers were dispatched on Tuesday to assess the hole. Local officials have said that residents can stay in their homes despite the reopening, as it is cordoned off by a chain-link fence and poses no threat to surrounding buildings.
Such a sinkhole is not a rare sight in Florida due to the porous limestone rock that lies beneath residential areas. As clay and water build up above points of weakness, the cumulative weight becomes too much for the limestone and it gives way, creating a sinkhole. This one was around 19 feet (6 meters) wide, making it a relatively small sinkhole.
"None of the homes surrounding this appear to be in any danger,” said Jon-Paul Lavandeira, director of the county code enforcement department, reports AP News.
“This is not uncommon, what we’re seeing here.”
The sinkhole will now once again be filled with a water-gravel mix to seal the hole, and will remain closed to the public for safety.
