Kansas Sinkhole 200 Feet And Growing: Why Do Sinkholes Form? [VIDEOS]
A massive Kansas sinkhole that swallowed an entire pasture was discovered in Wallace County. At 200 feet wide and 90 feet deep, residents of the county evacuated the area as experts say the sinkhole will continue to grow.
The giant Kansas sinkhole lies in the middle of Dalton Hoss' pasture. Hoss described the moment the sinkhole was discovered.
Like Us on Facebook
"Actually, my brother found it. He called me up and his voice was quaking and he said, ‘You’ll never believe what I just saw,’” Hoss said. The Kansas sinkhole formed overnight.
While 200 feet wide isn't exactly the grand canyon, the scale of the sinkhole is astonishing in person.
“I’d seen pictures and I knew it was deep, but I didn’t think it was this deep. You get out here and you get a whole different perspective on how deep it is,” said Gavin Mote.
Sheriff Larry Townsend believes the massive Kansas sinkhole may get larger still as large cracks are noted at the edge of the hole. The safety of the area is unknown.
Sinkholes are silent killers that rarely show any warning before collapse. According to experts, sinkholes depend on a number of facturs including weather and moisture. Man-made factors including wells and plumbing affect the ground as well.
"An extensive drought can cause soil and sediment over a cavity to be extremely dry and collapse," said State Geologist Jonathan Arthur, indicating the other face of the coin.
At the same time, a rainy season can cause acid in the water drops to eat away limestone. Ultimately, Arthur says that many variables can cause a sinkhole. What's more, sinkholes are naturally occurring phenomenons, regardless of human activity they would occur."
"Man had nothing to do with this. This is a God thing. There’s no oil well around here, there are no irrigation wells anywhere near. This is something that just happened,” Sheriff Townsend said.
© 2012 iScience Times All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.