Sinkhole swallows 2 homes, continues to grow in Land O' Lakes neighborhood

a reply to: veracity

That chimney used to be 20 feet high

The hole is estimated to be 50 feet deep

As for insurance the best you get in most parts of Florida is a catastrophic umbrella policy, I believe that is how my dad phrased it. After the last major Hurricane the insurance companies pulled out for the most part.

There are land surveys, but sometimes you get flooding that messes up the structural integrity underground then in other years you have drought conditions and the smaller counties get graped by the more populous ones for their water so you have houses built on a small bit of land over a cave.

It sucks but it is a risk living in Florida, I was born and raised not to far from land o lakes, nice place to visit not anyplace I would want to live anymore.

a reply to: iWontGiveUP

Well, there goes the neighborhood.

Wow thats wild. Our friends advised us that before we buy a house in the Tampa/Holiday area to consider a sink hole could open up at any time under our house, taking us or the house with it. Def. something to consider seriously I see.

-Alee

originally posted by: Irishhaf
As for insurance the best you get in most parts of Florida is a catastrophic umbrella policy, I believe that is how my dad phrased it. After the last major Hurricane the insurance companies pulled out for the most part.

There are land surveys, but sometimes you get flooding that messes up the structural integrity underground then in other years you have drought conditions and the smaller counties get graped by the more populous ones for their water so you have houses built on a small bit of land over a cave.

It sucks but it is a risk living in Florida, I was born and raised not to far from land o lakes, nice place to visit not anyplace I would want to live anymore.

That's not correct at all. In Florida there are many carriers who offer wind coverage AKA Hurricane coverage. You can choose to exclude wind and use all other perils coverage which would include fire, lightning, tornado etc. However if a named storm is in your area when you suffer a loss then wouldn't be covered unless you have wind coverage. Flood is a whole other can of worms as it is separate coverage from homeowners policy.

On another note an umbrella policy is used in conjunction to other polices to offer more liability coverage in the event you exhaust your other coverages in a claim against liability.

originally posted by: NerdGoddess
Wow thats wild. Our friends advised us that before we buy a house in the Tampa/Holiday area to consider a sink hole could open up at any time under our house, taking us or the house with it. Def. something to consider seriously I see.

-Alee

Technically a sink hole can open anywhere however the Florida area and places like it are more prone to natural occurring sink holes. (not from man made utilities) But a possible little hole under your house is worth all the other great natural beauty Florida has to offer. No other place like it on earth in my opinion!!

So did you get yourself a home there yet? Tampa South to Charlotte Harbor is a really nice area!! Not many Hurricanes make direct hit on the side of the coast.

originally posted by: GuidedKill

originally posted by: BlueJacket
a reply to: iWontGiveUP

Isnt florida entirely pourous lime stone? I believe thats at least partially to blame here. Over time I suspect much more of this.

Not all of Florida but a large amount yes. Florida is full of underground water aquafers and rivers. When water levels rise and fall underground these leave voids which allow the soil and sediment to collapse into the void eventually over time causing a sink hole..

I would imagine the neighbors are in danger and they most likely will not be returning to their home, even after the ground becomes stable. I hope they have sink hole insurance, but judging by the mention of prior sink holes I would guess not.


Good explanation here..

TER-RIF-FY-ING!!!

perhaps someone can invent sink hole detection units?

a reply to: veracity

They have had ground penetration radar since at least the 1970's.
Of course if a deeper analysis finds a "cave" that is too voluminous to fill with concrete under the one you can..
Kind of like putting them in concrete overshoes?

Are sinkholes increasing because I never heard nor saw one before only in the last few years.

a reply to: testingtesting

The sinkholes aren't, the people and the housing developments are!!!

It's a population issue, actually

The sinkholes form lakes, its Florida
It will continue to happen
It's nature

Wow.
Can't imagine while trying to save yourself from every other disaster, that your home or even a person. can be swallowed into the Earth . Fortunately nobody was home, the poor dogs must have been scared though.

originally posted by: testingtesting
Are sinkholes increasing because I never heard nor saw one before only in the last few years.

Seems like they are.


It's bad engineeering.
Can't go around building on top of a weak base where there's underground aquifers and heavy rains that can cause higher water tables.

Seems Florida has so many but they're all over the world.

One of the scariest things I've ever heard is the true story of the Florida man who had been lying in bed when the earth swallowed him whole. They never recovered his body. They believe he was swept away into an underground river.

Here's a link: www.cnn.com...

originally posted by: Dudemo5
One of the scariest things I've ever heard is the true story of the Florida man who had been lying in bed when the earth swallowed him whole. They never recovered his body. They believe he was swept away into an underground river.

Here's a link: www.cnn.com...

I posted a link to the the video inside the bedroom on page 1

Creepy and scary, but intriguing nonetheless

originally posted by: iWontGiveUP

originally posted by: Dudemo5
One of the scariest things I've ever heard is the true story of the Florida man who had been lying in bed when the earth swallowed him whole. They never recovered his body. They believe he was swept away into an underground river.

Here's a link: www.cnn.com...

I posted a link to the the video inside the bedroom on page 1

Creepy and scary, but intriguing nonetheless

Super freaky. I learned about this incident on the Weather Channel, on a show about all the different ways the earth could kill you. That night I'd be lying if I said I didn't think about it as I was trying to get to sleep.

my thoughts after seeing the video with the mushy water

Helped manage a campground, had some small underground water line issues, have driven large tractor into spots that looks dry but sunk 3 ft deep like nothing, had to use the bucket to pull and lift machine before too far gone

Also have had video of metal sewage lines where after enough time has passed tree and plant roots have slowly grown in through the threads of the pipe fittings

Now consider how ancient most infrastructure is. Given time a leak in a cracked fire hydrant main or whathaveyou and the right geology that could pool the water under that area and eventually would cause all above to drop and become mush like seen in the video

Another thought,that prick with the pool, lol, does it drain and where does the water go? Is there a crack and waters been leaking out steady? Has he been constantly running water into it to keep it filled?

Over time water leaks can do crazy things