Imagine driving down the street, minding your own business, when the
road beneath your wheels suddenly gives way. The thoughts race through
your mind: Is it an earthquake? Have you been in an accident? No, it’s
something much stranger.
Your car has fallen into a sinkhole, and you’re not the only one.
These are popping up all over the world, and it’s becoming a serious
problem.
1. Sinkholes like this one above, which
appeared in a small province in China in 2012, are what happens when a
collapse occurs below the surface that we can’t see.
2. The ground beneath the surface deteriorates, either from erosion or chemical dissolution, and bam! Commute ruined.
3.
There’s often no way of telling where they will occur or how big they
will be. The damage from this sinkhole in Poland spanned the highway and
onto a private property.
4. At least this truck driver won’t have a hard time remembering where he parked.
5. When water gets involved, things can get messy in a hurry.
6.
This sinkhole in China has been growing ever since it first appeared in
2010. More than 20 homes have been swallowed up by it so far.
7. A crowd gathers to watch as the street slowly gives way beneath this sinkhole.
8. A coastal storm left this massive sinkhole in France in 2008.
9. This Italian interstate collapsed into an underground cave system.
10. They couldn’t even see the bottom of this New Wales sinkhole from a helicopter…
11. Local kids can’t help but inspect the sight of this random sinkhole in their small town. I hope that person had insurance!
12. This woman was at a loss when a sinkhole randomly appeared in her driveway. Thank goodness no one was hurt.
13. A couple was driving down the street when their car fell into this massive sinkhole.
14. The guests at this Florida resort only had ten minutes to escape before half the structure was swallowed up.
15. Filling up this giant sinkhole was a tremendous task for this small Chinese town.
16. Several cars were sucked down!
17. Repairing these sinkholes can be costly.
18. Tragically, one poor soul did not survive this incident.
19. Rain and bad weather led to this one.
20. This sinkhole looks like someone cracked the highway in half with their bare hands.
21. In some parts of Spain sinkholes are so common they don’t even impress pedestrians anymore.
22. This one looks Photoshopped but unfortunately, it is real.
23. This perfectly round sinkhole on a riverbed is particularly treacherous.
24. This car tried to escape when the road collapsed, but to no avail.
25. Even the diggers called in to help were caught in this sinkhole.
26.
Pamela Knox of Ohio played on her cellphone while waiting to be rescued
from this sinkhole. She miraculously had no injuries at all.
27. Another hidden cave system was to blame for this collapse. Look how deep it goes…
28. This group had to hurry to save this car before the road gave way completely.
29. Some police officers are doing their best to keep this situation from getting even worse.
30. This collapse actually allows you to see the infrastructure beneath the road itself.
31. A tsunami is to blame for this sinkhole.
32. This sinkhole in San Diego is practically a sink-highway.
33. Dozens lost their homes to this German sinkhole. Sadly, some residents are still missing.
34. This Chinese sinkhole may not be so deep, but it is quite wide.
35. This sinkhole appeared overnight in a Florida backyard.
I can’t imagine something this insane happening in real life. Some of these don’t even look real… but they are.