Sinkhole

[elevatorman]

Wife just came in and said there is a large sinkhole on Buena Vista. The road is closed. North of El Camimo.

[villages07]

E-Man...thanks for the report. I have been curious if our recent 10+ inches of rain was going to cause any sinkholes.

There was one in a residential front yard not too far from me in Sabal Chase....filled it up with tons of sand. Someone in that neighborhood mentioned that there was also one somewhere in Hadley and on the Havana golf course.

Any confirmation of these or other reports?

This is a topic that I'm still trying to understand the risk for here in The Villages.

[mac9]

Hey, Villages7, I live in Sabal Chase. What street was the sinkhole?

[villages07]

shellbark way.... south of the pool on east side of canal

[graciegirl]

07? Will you drive by on Havana Trail and see if our house is still standing? F16?

[gemorc]

Alas! The beautiful pond, that used to accept your practice balls at Lopez driving range, is no more.

Also the picturesque lake, on El Camino Real, bordering on the village of Alhambra, has disappeared.

[graciegirl]

What IS a sinkhole??? I thought it was a hole in the ground. It must be a THIRSTY one if it drinks up ponds!

[SteveFromNY]

There was one under the golf cart path on Buena Vista north of Liberty Park on Memorial Day weekend. It showed up on the left side and went under the path. I'm not there now. Has anyone seen that one?

[chachacha]

i think most of our homeowner insurance policies cover damage from sinkholes...it is a risk in florida but does not happen very often...sorry to hear we have had a few here....

[rshoffer]

Check your homeowners policy. This is a serious problem around this area.

[downeaster]

What IS a sinkhole??? I thought it was a hole in the ground. It must be a THIRSTY one if it drinks up ponds!

Take a look here, Gracie,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sink_hole

We are sitting on limestone deposits here. As the ground water recedes it leaves space for surface water to seep down into the vacant space. Heavy rains cause the ponds to fill to the point where the pressure causes the seep to get more aggressive and large enough to empty the pond while washing dirt out with it. Like pulling the plug in a bath tub.

[Mopar]

We are closing on our home in The Village of Hemingway on Monday, June 15th. The news of the sink hole scares the be-jeezers out of us. I have googled a site on sink holes in Central Florida.
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/geology/geologictopics/sinkhole.htm

It appears Sumter county has sink holes but they are not as dangerous as some other areas in Florida.

Hope this website helps others with concerns.

We will be joining the "beautiful day in the Villages" group on June 17th, sink holes or not.:2excited:

Linda

Martinsville, IL, Crown Point, IN, Murfreesboro, Tn and soon The Village of Hemingway TV

[chuckinca]

Alas! The beautiful pond, that used to accept your practice balls at Lopez driving range, is no more.

Also the picturesque lake, on El Camino Real, bordering on the village of Alhambra, has disappeared.



This is a funny - right?


.

[Ooper]

No funny. What they'll do is fill the sink holes with fill and probably line the ponds with a plastic liner. Then they cover the liner with a foot or two of sand and filler back up with water. Next year this time, you won't even know what has happened.

[chuckinca]

Those are some good size bodies of water to be down the drain!

Wonder if the cost of repairs is covered by insurance?


.

[villages07]

chacha..... Sinkhole protection is contained in homeowner's policies, but, everyone should check to make sure they are covered.

I have Traveler's Insurance through The Villages Insurance company. Initially, sinkhole coverage was a standard protection subject to the 'all perils' deductible I chose. Last year, Travelers pulled this out of its base policy and made it an add-on protection. Cost was about $100 BUT the deductible is 10% of the value your dwelling is insured for. So, for a $250K dwelling (house only, not the land), you would pay the first $25K in sinkhole repairs out of pocket before insurance kicks in. That's a lot of exposure.

Other insurance carriers have a more reasonable $500 or $1,000 deductible for sinkhole claims.

As others have noted, the chance of you suffering sinkhole damage to your dwelling or land is very small, but, repairs are very costly.

As to who pays for repairs on public roads or in Villages common areas... I imagine the county pays for the roads and the CDD (is this insured???) pays for common areas.

[rshoffer]

There are homes in TV that have had severe and very expensive sinkhole problems. I guess it's like hurricanes... a risk you take to live here.

[KathieI]

There are homes in TV that have had severe and very expensive sinkhole problems. I guess it's like hurricanes... a risk you take to live here.

Yes, and like earthquakes in Los Angeles. I'd rather take those risks and see the sun everyday then shovel snow!!

[chuckster]

Homeowner insurance policy annual renewals are showing sink hole coverage as a rider and not part of the basic policy. Apparently the marion and sumter county region is at risk as are other areas of the state.

Recently my renewal which is 07/09 included a rider for this coverage and with the recent surge in sink holes it makes sense to me to carry it.

[TrudyM]

Homeowner insurance policy annual renewals are showing sink hole coverage as a rider and not part of the basic policy. Apparently the marion and sumter county region is at risk as are other areas of the state.

Recently my renewal which is 07/09 included a rider for this coverage and with the recent surge in sink holes it makes sense to me to carry it.

How much additional did it cost do you remember. I would like to add the cost to my basis in my cost of the villages spreadsheet.
Thanks from the numbercruncher.

[gemorc]

This is a funny - right?


.

Lighten up Chucky. If you can't control it, why not get a chuckle out of it. Laughter is the best medicine.

[villages07]

gemorc....

I'm still not sure if you were kidding or serious. Never crossed my mind on your original post that you might be goofing with us about Lopez driving range and Al Hambra pond.

I am assuming now that you were kidding...right?

[JohnM]

How much additional did it cost do you remember.

My rider cost $139 ... FWIW ...

John

[Bogie Shooter]

gemorc....

I'm still not sure if you were kidding or serious. Never crossed my mind on your original post that you might be goofing with us about Lopez driving range and Al Hambra pond.

I am assuming now that you were kidding...right?

Both statements are true.

[TrudyM]

My rider cost $139 ... FWIW ...

John

Thanks John, I think at 39 cents a night the insurance would be worth it to avoid the worry and nightmares. I will add it to my annual expense in the villages projections and the numbercrunching continues.

[JohnM]

I understand that sinkholes are very rare, but VERY expensive if it is under your home ... so I got the rider ...

John

[Cassie325]

Both statements are true.

There have been anywhere from 3-5 sink holes spotted at the Lopez course...several of their smaller ponds are empty....

AND yes the beautiful pond on El Camino at Alhambra is missing!!

On Friday there was sink hole issues on El Camino Real right in front of the pond and all the way to the pond.

It was quite a scene...with state troopers, the water company, big dirt diggers, the sherriff's office, an ambulance (as a car swurved onto the side of the road to avoid the sink hole).

However...if you drive down El Camino today you will just see a lot more sand near the road, on the road and a very empty pond.

It certainly has brought in a lot of beautiful birds as they are feeding on the fish.

[Hawkwind]

Anyone have pictures of the empty ponds that they can upload? I for one would be interested in seeing.

Posted without looking at the picture albums and sure enough there are some pictures. Thanks Sandy222.

[downeaster]

.

It certainly has brought in a lot of beautiful birds as they are feeding on the fish.

And a terrible odor. I feel sorry for those living downwind from those ponds.

[chuckinca]

Lighten up Chucky. If you can't control it, why not get a chuckle out of it. Laughter is the best medicine.


My name isn't Chucky.


.

[rshoffer]

Anyone have pictures of the empty ponds that they can upload? I for one would be interested in seeing.

Posted without looking at the picture albums and sure enough there are some pictures. Thanks Sandy222.Take a drive to Lopez...

[chuckinca]

Take a drive to Lopez...


Hard to do for snowbirds.


.

[Barefoot]

Can someone post some pictures? It would be very interesting for those of us in exile.
Thanks.

[villages07]

Here's the link to the album posted by Sandy222 (thanks for doing this!!!)

https://www.talkofthevillages.com/forums/album.php?albumid=159

That's quite a sight and must be pretty scary for the folks that live around the pond. It's been several weeks since all the rain... I guess sinkholes take a while to reveal themselves.

[meriboo]

HOLY COW!!!!! Thanks for posting the pictures.

[rshoffer]

hard to do for snowbirds.


.sorry

[graciegirl]

There was this hollow sounding place in the middle of my garage floor. Oh brother. I hope it didn't sink.

[TrudyM]

OOH OOH :shocked: This hollow sound could be bad. The house we had in Atlanta had a hollow sound like that under the floor in the Living room (house was on slab) Come to find out that they had in the past a broken water line that they had fixed but the water had run that direction on toward the back yard taking dirt with it. There was no visual clue that this had happened. We drilled a hole in the slab and pumped in concrete rather than jack hammer the whole thing this worked but I was astonded at how much it took. The slab had just started to crack and we got it just in time. I hope this is not the case for you. By the way our homeowners protection plan that came with the property did not cover it. They said it was due to an impoper repair previously and therefore not covered. I have gotten that line (or improper instalation) every time I (or anyone I know) has had a plumbing issue and tried to get it fixed under home waranty.

[Barefoot]

Here's the link to the album posted by Sandy222 (thanks for doing this!!!)
https://www.talkofthevillages.com/forums/album.php?albumid=159
That's quite a sight and must be pretty scary for the folks that live around the pond. It's been several weeks since all the rain... I guess sinkholes take a while to reveal themselves.

Wowser, scary pictures indeed. Thanks Sandy for taking the time to post the pictures.

[katezbox]

There was a sinkhole on the Kenya golf course - it has been reparied and roped off.

[chuckster]

Following is an informative site regarding sinkholes. Well worth reading. Also posted this under the insurance for sinkhole thread.

http://aquat1.ifas.ufl.edu/guide/sinkholes.html

[joannej]

Have their been any more sink hole sightings in the Villages? We live in the Mallory Square area.

[Ooper]

Have their been any more sink hole sightings in the Villages? We live in the Mallory Square area.

Currrently... not sure. But if you are talking historically, there havee been many sinkholes over the years. The large pond south of the Lopez clubhouse was drained a couple years ago, there was a couple sinkholes on the Glenview course, and the large pond at the Santiago course off El Camino was emptied due to a sinkhole a few years back. These are just a few that I recall.

[downeaster]

Have their been any more sink hole sightings in the Villages? We live in the Mallory Square area.

Most of them have been on golf courses and in retention ponds where the surface has been altered.

[Tom Hannon]

Just purchased an Iris in Buttonwood adjacent to Redfish Run golf course. I won't be moving in until early September. I am just learning about sinkholes and wonder if this is something to worry about. Tom Hannon / from East Meadow/Ronkonkoma New York

[Bogie Shooter]

Just purchased an Iris in Buttonwood adjacent to Redfish Run golf course. I won't be moving in until early September. I am just learning about sinkholes and wonder if this is something to worry about. Tom Hannon / from East Meadow/Ronkonkoma New York
Worrying will not change anything. Be sure it is included in your homeowners policy.

[downeaster]

Bogie Shooter is right , Tom. I would add, look for it in the policy and don't take the agent's word for it.

[Dan =^..^=]

Just purchased an Iris in Buttonwood adjacent to Redfish Run golf course. I won't be moving in until early September. I am just learning about sinkholes and wonder if this is something to worry about. Tom Hannon / from East Meadow/Ronkonkoma New York

Welcome Tom.

We too are having an Iris built in Buttonwood. Hopefully no sink holes in our area.