Sinkhole that led to man's disappearance in 2013 reopens

In 2013, Jeff Bush, 37, suddenly disappeared after a sinkhole opened right under him in the middle of the night.

The sinkhole swallowed gravel and debris before being filled in, but it has now reappeared years later. The sinkhole, located at 240 Faithway Drive in Seffner, Florida, has been cordoned off by authorities.

A decade ago, Bush was sleeping in his bedroom when the earth opened up. Five others escaped unharmed, and Bush’s brother, Jeremy, tried in vain to dig him out of the hole. Jeff Bush’s body has never been found.

Fire service were called to the area at 4:30pm on Monday, and engineers were dispatched on Tuesday to assess the sinkhole.

Despite its reopening, residents living in the surrounding houses have been assured they can remain in their homes, as it poses no threat to the nearby buildings, thanks to a chain-link fence surrounding it that was put in place after Bush’s passing.

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Such sinkholes are not uncommon in Florida due to the presence of porous limestone rock beneath residential areas. The accumulation of clay and water above weak points causes the limestone to give way and create sinkholes. In this case, the sinkhole’s diameter is about 19 feet (6 metres), making it relatively small.

“None of the homes surrounding this appear to be in any danger,” said Jon-Paul Lavandeira, director of the county code enforcement department, reports AP News.

“This is not uncommon, what we’re seeing here.” He also added that the sinkhole will likely reopen in the future, “this is Mother Nature. This is not a man-made occurrence.”

The sinkhole will be filled once again with a water-gravel mixture to seal it. For safety reasons, the area will remain closed to the public.

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