Santa María Zacatepec, Mexico: A massive 60-meter sinkhole has popped up in a farmer’s land endangering a neighboring house.
A farmer was shocked when he discovered a giant hole in their land, which, according to state governor Miguel Barbosa Huerta, is 60 meters (200 ft) wide, 20 meters (65 ft) deep, and expanding.
The crater-like hole, which seems to have appeared out of nothing, has led to locals worrying about a nearby house. The family which owns the property has, as a consequence, been evacuated. Authorities have also warned that the locals should stay away from the sinkhole as a safety measure.
Thankfully, no one was hurt, but the hole has impacted the people who have been evacuated.
Magdalena and Heriberto Sánchez, the owners of the house that had to be vacated, explained what happened in a recent interview.
Ms. Sanchez said:
“At 6 o’clock we heard thunder and we did not think this was it, and then my in-laws realised it. When I got closer, I saw that the earth sank and how the water was bubbling and I panicked.”
In another interview, Mr. Sanchez talked about the impact it has on them.
“We have nothing. We’re not from here. We have no relatives. We’re alone,” he said, adding that the hole was upsetting because they had to sacrifice a lot to built the house.
Huge sinkhole appears in Mexico threatening to swallow nearby farm pic.twitter.com/AZZrUGgVvC
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An investigation into the events that led to the appearance of the sinkhole will now begin.
Experts will be analyzing the sinkhole to understand its causes and whether something of its kind could reappear somewhere else.
At this time, the giant hole can be seen with moving water at the bottom, which could mean that the sinkhole appeared naturally. Environmental secretary Beatriz Manrique has been hypothesizing what could have happened.
She said the following:
“We think that it might be a combination of two factors: the softening of the field, the whole area was being cultivated, as well as the extraction of groundwater, which softens the subsoil.”
Normally, a sinkhole can appear when flowing underground water softens the ground, and this theory is supported by the locals.
A person from the area told local media:
“A long time ago there was a jagüey there, but we don’t know why they covered it, but we think that the water struggled to regain its space and that is why it appeared.”
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