Mexico: A huge sinkhole some 60 meters, approximately 200 feet, in diameter has appeared on Saturday in farmers’ fields in central Mexico, threatening to swallow a nearby house.
On Monday, Miguel Barbosa Huerta, the state governor said that the sinkhole is situated in Santa María Zacatepec, Puebla state, and is around 20 meters (65.6 feet) deep, added, the family that lives close to the sinkhole has been evacuated. Referring to the incident as a ‘geological fault’ Barbosa said, “I tell the Poblanos and the people of the region that we are going to be aware that there are no human tragedies. It is a geological fault that must be addressed with great care, with technique, and with all the precautions and we are doing it.”
No one has been injured so far, but the governor warned local residents to stay away from the area.
According to Beatriz Manrique, environmental secretary for the Mexico region, the sinkhole measured 5 meters (16.4 feet) in diameter when it first appeared then grew quickly in just a few hours, “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,” said Manrique.
An investigation is underway to establish the reason behind the sinkhole’s formation.
Magdalena and Heriberto Sánchez, the owners of the house that was evacuated, said that they heard a sound like thunder before the sinkhole opened up.
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), sinkholes occur when the ground can no longer support the land surface above it. This can happen for a number of reasons, including the erosion of rock beneath the land surface as groundwater passes through it, leaving a void into which the surface collapses.
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