A massive sinkhole, more than 300 feet in diameter has appeared in a farmer’s field in Mexico. It appeared in Santa María Zacatepec, Puebla state on Saturday. The sinkhole which is filled with water is threatening to swallow a nearby house.
The sinkhole was about 15 feet wide in diameter when it first appeared. It grew rapidly in just a few hours threatening to swallow the nearby house. The people living in the house were evacuated. The house owners reported hearing a thunderous sound before finding the pit a few meters away from their home.
Puebla officials have warned the locals not to go near the crater to avoid danger. They have cordoned off the area.
A video posted on Twitter shows the ground caving in and onlookers running away from it.
??Un #socavon de al menos 60 metros de diámetro por 15 metros de profundidad, dentro del cual hay agua, se abrió en la comunidad de Zacatepec, municipio de Juan C. Bonilla #Puebla. ?
En vecino del lugar captó el momento en que el #Socavón se expande en terrenos de cultivo. pic.twitter.com/5hFON9Rcm0— Ana Laura Vásquez (@analita_vasquez) June 1, 2021
A sinkhole is a depression or hole in the ground caused by some form of collapse of the surface layer. This happens when water dissolves the layer soluble rocks (carbonate rocks) such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum underneath the soil. When the ground can no longer support the land surface above it, it caves in creating a sinkhole.
Sinkholes are also created through the process of suffusion. These occur in areas where the limestone beneath the surface of the ground has fissures in it. When it rains, the loose soil or other materials lying on top of the ground are washed through the fissures into the caves beneath and over the time this creates a depression on the landscape.
Sinkholes are found worldwide and they can be formed gradually or suddenly.
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