Sinkholes in Melbourne

Susie

Susie

Member
Location
Australia
Sinkholes are opening up in many places in Melbourne swallowing cars, parts of houses, even people (lady in suburban Springvale while hanging up washing found herself in deep sinkhole, unable to touch bottom. Luckily a neighbor heard her cries and managed to pull her out).
Do you have sinkholes where you live (Florida?),
Please see scarey photos:
https://www.google.com.au/search?q=...AQsARqFQoTCKKi9-CG3sYCFYckpgod2mkILw&dpr=1.25
 

Years ago where was a big story here (Ohio USA). A huge sinkhole opened up in the middle of downtown and a lawyer in a Mercedes fell in! He wasn’t hurt, but I’m betting he at least got a new car! Seemed to take them forever to fix the hole. That would be so scary.
 
BobF said:
Yes the US has plenty of sink holes.

http://strangesounds.org/2013/07/us...the-u-s-lies-in-areas-prone-to-sinkholes.html
Click to expand...
Thank you, Bobf, for a very interesting article about sinkholes in the U.S.
Just imagine-40% of the U.S. lie in areas prone to sinkholes--they can vary from a few feet to 100's of acres and from less than 1 to to more than 100 feet deep.
What if builders construct houses in an area that develops sinkholes?
What precautions can be taken to avoid areas possibly prone to sinkholes?
 
Susie said:
Sinkholes are opening up in many places in Melbourne swallowing cars, parts of houses, even people (lady in suburban Springvale while hanging up washing found herself in deep sinkhole, unable to touch bottom. Luckily a neighbor heard her cries and managed to pull her out).
Do you have sinkholes where you live (Florida?),
Please see scarey photos:
https://www.google.com.au/search?q=...AQsARqFQoTCKKi9-CG3sYCFYckpgod2mkILw&dpr=1.25
Click to expand...

I have in-laws in Melbourne! Yarraville.
 
I have heard about these over in Florida area .. are they from old mines etc? here in Australia down in an area outside Melbourne in Victoria .. there is a place where they
had mines and similar things happened.. in a place called Moe. as a relative of mine bought a home and it was sinking.. due to mines underground.. maybe gold mines
or earlier years.. Melbourne area also had a woman hanging out her washing and she fell in the hole.. how frightening that would be..
 
The ground below man made construction is a work in progress. If you think about it the current so called modern society with massive building in the cities and suburbs has only been a round for a few centuries at best which is a spec of time in the grand scheme of things. Big whup nothing happened the last 75 years or so, that doesn't mean that the 76 year is only the end of the first second.

One must wonder what the engineers or codes required for testing of the ground below. Or did they bother to do required test or any at all. Man has been very presumptuous and arrogant thinking they know everything based on their experience. I know people have lived in homes 40 years plus and wonder why they are having to do so many repairs not once but twice. Their previous experience was living less than 10-20 years in a smaller home or apartment not seeing the wear & tear cycles wether it be the floors, roof, paint, tree trimming etc. If you see cracking in walls or ceilings that is a sign things are moving even though fractions of inches per year. This is why one shouldn't finish/panel a basement or any wall/ceiling actually so you can see what goes over the course of time. I'm sure there were signs of movement or forming sink hole prior.

TIME, a lot of things happen over the course of time and you are probably not at the beginning or end of a period of time.
 
Susie said:
Thank you, Bobf, for a very interesting article about sinkholes in the U.S.
Just imagine-40% of the U.S. lie in areas prone to sinkholes--they can vary from a few feet to 100's of acres and from less than 1 to to more than 100 feet deep.
What if builders construct houses in an area that develops sinkholes?
What precautions can be taken to avoid areas possibly prone to sinkholes?
Click to expand...

I lived for several years in Boca Raton. But I don't remember any thing like 'sinkhole' insurance. But here is what I just found on the web.

http://www.sinkhole.com/sinkhole-insurance.html
 
WhatInThe said:
The ground below man made construction is a work in progress. If you think about it the current so called modern society with massive building in the cities and suburbs has only been a round for a few centuries at best which is a spec of time in the grand scheme of things. Big whup nothing happened the last 75 years or so, that doesn't mean that the 76 year is only the end of the first second.

One must wonder what the engineers or codes required for testing of the ground below. Or did they bother to do required test or any at all. Man has been very presumptuous and arrogant thinking they know everything based on their experience. I know people have lived in homes 40 years plus and wonder why they are having to do so many repairs not once but twice. Their previous experience was living less than 10-20 years in a smaller home or apartment not seeing the wear & tear cycles wether it be the floors, roof, paint, tree trimming etc. If you see cracking in walls or ceilings that is a sign things are moving even though fractions of inches per year. This is why one shouldn't finish/panel a basement or any wall/ceiling actually so you can see what goes over the course of time. I'm sure there were signs of movement or forming sink hole prior.

TIME, a lot of things happen over the course of time and you are probably not at the beginning or end of a period of time.
Click to expand...
Thank you "WhatInThe" for your comment, makes sense to me, especially: 'I'm sure there were signs of movement or forming sinkhole prior.'
If man can be partially blamed for the formation of sinkholes (see Bobf's article), and if you notice signs of movement, what steps could you take to prevent a giant sinkhole opening up, gobbling up everything in sight?
Surely, scientific intelligence must have come up with some kind of solution by now!
Anyone know?
(For example: What preventive measures are being taken in Florida?)
 
BobF said:
I lived for several years in Boca Raton. But I don't remember any thing like 'sinkhole' insurance. But here is what I just found on the web.

http://www.sinkhole.com/sinkhole-insurance.html
Click to expand...


Read thru the 'sinkhole insurance' you posted, Bobf.
Who would want to buy a place requiring sinkhole insurance?
And what good will it do if you have to live out your very last moments in an earth covered tomb? Guess it would cover the excavation costs, though!
(Apologies for sarcasm)
 
I don't know of any preventative measures they can take as most of Florida is built of soft materials. And lots of water travels under the Florida surface. Like a sunken river and the southern part of Florida depends on this water for their drinking usage. Some area are so heavily into tapping this underground stream that sea water is moving inland underground and ruining the salt free drinking water. The sink hole insurance is one way of protecting your investment. Maybe some areas being active will be shut down for future building. Mostly not much you can do as the instance of a house going down with the man inside suggest quick and permanent activity.

Places like Pennsylvania where maybe some mines might collapse can be marked. One area in Pennsylvania, I believe, has a coal mine on fire for many years now. That area could be marked against construction.
 
There are probably many reasons for sinkholes....primarily related to voids being created in the layers of earth below our populated areas. One of the latest suspects is the increasing use of ground water, via wells, etc. that is creating caverns underground. This water helps suspend the soil above it, and as the water is increasingly tapped for human and agricultural use, larger voids are being created....which eventually can result in the ground above collapsing.
 
Don M. said:
There are probably many reasons for sinkholes....primarily related to voids being created in the layers of earth below our populated areas. One of the latest suspects is the increasing use of ground water, via wells, etc. that is creating caverns underground. This water helps suspend the soil above it, and as the water is increasingly tapped for human and agricultural use, larger voids are being created....which eventually can result in the ground above collapsing.
Click to expand...

Funny you mention that because certain neighborhoods around here have small sinkholes near or above water company pipe lines. When they leak unrepaired for days or weeks on end that leaking water washes away under the street leaving air space between the road surface and dirt/ground underneath. A heavy vehilce runs over or parks on the area then are alot of truck tire size dips in the road.
 

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