The bare minimum that a property owner needs to know about sinkholes or any other sudden subsidence of soils at a property is that these conditions might be very dangerous. Someone falling into a sink hole or into a collapsing septic tank could be seriously injured or even die. If a suspicious hole, subsidence, or depression appears at a property the owner should rope off and prevent access to the area to prevent anyone from falling into the opening, and then should seek prompt assistance from a qualified expert, geotechnical engineer, septic contractor, excavator, or the like.
Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, Repair, & Problem Prevention Advice - Huge Data Base on Sinkholes around the USA
Sinkholes are depressions or holes in the land surface that occur throughout west central Florida. They can be shallow or deep, small or large, but all are a result of the dissolving of the underlying limestone.
Hydrologic conditions, including lack of rainfall, lowered water levels, or, conversely, excessive rainfall in a short period of time, can all contribute to sinkhole development. More facts about sinkholes can be found in the District’s Sinkhole Brochure (http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/hydrology/sinkholes/brochure.pdf).
Sinkholes are a common feature of Florida's landscape. They are only one of many kinds of karst landforms, which include caves, disappearing streams, springs, and underground drainage systems, all of which occur in Florida. Karst is a generic term which refers to the characteristic terrain produced by erosional processes associated with the chemical weathering and dissolution of limestone or dolomite, the two most common carbonate rocks in Florida. Dissolution of carbonate rocks begins when they are exposed to acidic water. Most rainwater is slightly acidic and usually becomes more acidic as it moves through decaying plant debris.
Limestones in Florida are porous, allowing the acidic water to percolate through their strata, dissolving some limestone and carrying it away in solution. Over eons of time, this persistent erosional process has created extensive underground voids and drainage systems in much of the carbonate rocks throughout the state. Collapse of overlying sediments into the underground cavities produces sinkholes.
A picture of a cave showing stalagtites and stalagmites When groundwater discharges from an underground drainage system, it is a spring, such as Wakulla Springs, Silver Springs, or Rainbow Springs. Sinkholes can occur in the beds of streams, sometimes taking all of the stream's flow, creating a disappearing stream. Dry caves are parts of karst drainage systems that are above the water table, such as Marianna Caverns.
If you notice a sinkhole on your property immediately call your insurance company. They will send out a professional to assess the danger and damage. We are investors who specialize in sinkhole damaged houses. We will purchase your unrepaired sinkhole house for fair market value. The value of your house will decrease 20% to 30% from that of a non sinkhole house. The cost of repairs can be over a 100,000.00 dollars and sinkhole issues may continue for years. If you would like to opt out of your financial sinkhole. We buy Sinkhole houses in Clearwater Florida.
Sinkhole homes generally experience cracking in the walls and ceilings as well as indentations in the lawn and slopping in the floors. The structural damage caused by a sink hole can be dangerous and life threatening. It is rare to have a home collapse into a sink hole but it has happened. If you see a sink hole on your property immediately rope it off and call your insurance company and your local water company.
Recently a home collapsed into a sink hole in Clearwater Florida. Attached are some photos of this homes. This home has been all over the news and it frightened many people. Sinkholes can be serious and dangerous. If you experience a sinkhole do not hesitate to call your insurance company who will send out engineers to assess the damage to the home or property. Holes that appear to be minor can be many feet deep. A small child or animal could become trapped in a sinkhole. The home itself could possible become unstable and collapse. Be aware of the issues that are most prevalent in Florida counties such as Clearwater Florida.
Call the insurance company and listen to their assessment. If you are dissatisfied with their determinations contact a lawyer immediately. A lawyer will be able to appeal the determination made by the insurance company. If you find that the insurance company is refusing to pay for the repairs and claiming that the damage is due to a storm drain or another natural situation call an sink hole attorney. On close investigation it may be found that the drain just irritated a pre=existing sinkhole issue. Sinkholes can be repaired but the costs can be hundreds of thousands of dollars. The quicker the situation is assessed the less damage to the structure of the home. Call me if you are concerned about your sinkhole home and are interested in selling it as is. I am looking to purchase sink hole homes in Florida. We are Sinkhole home buyers in Florida.
LAKELAND, Fla. — Two giant sinkholes almost completely drained a lake, leaving dead fish rotting on oozing mud flats and alligators and snapping turtles fighting for their lives.
Scott Lake began draining last week, and the larger of the two sinkholes grew this week to at least 200 feet wide and 15 feet deep, claiming a dock, concrete walkway and chain-link fence.
“It’s heartbreaking,” said Linda Logan, a member of a local homeowners’ association.
The 291-acre natural lake is owned by the surrounding homeowners south of Lakeland, 30 miles east of Tampa. Residents formed a committee to figure out what to do.
The lake could be restored. If the sinkholes are filled in, rain and runoff would refill the lake, but that could take years, and experts say they would have to wait for the lake to finish draining first.
Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
The state of Florida is plagued with sink holes. The one pictured below is a small sink hole in Lake County. This time of the year (early spring) is considered the "dry period" in Florida. With lack of rain and the drain on the underground water sources, pockets are formed underground which give way, creating huge holes. The appearance of sink holes is not predictable, like this one.
Before homes are built, it's common to have experts test the ground for potential sink holes. Many Florida homeowners have sink hole coverage in their home owner insurance policy. It's not uncommon for a home to "settle" into the ground due to these conditions, creating cracks in the structure and foundation.
...but i'm still a little weary about the entire sink hole thing...i'd rather come home from work and see a hole then wake up and be in one 8)
A huge sinkhole in Guatemala City (map), Guatemala, crashed into being on Sunday, reportedly swallowing a three-story building—and echoing a similar, 2007 sinkhole in Guatemala.
The sinkhole has likely been weeks or even years in the making—floodwaters from tropical storm Agatha caused the sinkhole to finally collapse, scientists say.
The sinkhole appears to be about 60 feet (18 meters) wide and about 30 stories deep, said James Currens, a hydrogeologist at the University of Kentucky.
The sinkhole in Winter Park, Florida (map), opened up in 1981 underneath the city's public swimming pool, Missouri State's Gouzie said.
"I've never seen a final report as to whether the pool was leaking," he said, adding that water can flow into the underlying soil through tiny cracks in the bottom of a pool. Even watering plants at the pool's perimeter could have sent enough runoff through Florida's sandy soil to erode the solid limestone underneath.
Gouzie said the U.S. Geological Survey has mapped the types of bedrock that exist across the country. But studies of the underground cracks and fissures—and the way water travels through them—are still needed to predict where sinkholes could occur.
This 185-foot-deep (56-meter-deep) sinkhole appeared in 1994 in Mulberry, Florida (map), in a pile of waste material dumped by mining company IMC-Agrico. The company was mining rock to extract phosphate, a main ingredient in fertilizers and a chemical used to produce phosphoric acid, added to enhance the taste of soda and various food items.
After phosphate was extracted from the rocks, the gypsum-based waste product was dumped as a slurry. As layer after layer of the stuff dried, it formed cracks, like those that appear in dried mud. Water later made its way through the cracks and carried away subsurface material, setting the stage for a sinkhole.
Regulators said the company was able to manage the sinkhole to prevent any harm to the underground drinking water supply.
We are only 11 ft, above sea level.
I live in Brevard county in Florida and the water table down here is virtually almost at ground level in some areas.
we have mine subsidence's insurance here.. i wonder if they have sinkhole insurance in fla..? ::)
A new law regarding sinkhole insurance became effective this past January, just in time for one of the worst sinkhole seasons Florida has seen in years. This law will especially impact residents of two particular counties, Pasco and Hernando, because private insurers are no longer required to automatically include sinkhole coverage in homeowner policies. Instead, the policies may protect for more limited circumstances, like those of catastrophic ground cover collapse damage. Sinkhole insurance policies now come with hefty additional fees.
Who is responsible for the repairs caused by sinkholes, which are naturally occurring land-surface depressions typically found in limestone-rich areas? What role do the homeowner's insurance companies operating in Florida and the Florida government have in aiding those impacted by sinkholes? These and other questions may help resolve the debate among many Floridians about whether to drop, add or renew comprehensive sinkhole insurance.