Two days later, a school bus driver in Brooklyn, New York, ran into a huge crater on his route. Luckily, no children were on board and the driver survived with minor injuries.
Just last week, massive holes opened up in New York City's lower Manhattan, suburban Atlanta and San Francisco.
Sinkholes are not a new phenomenon in the United States, especially in a half dozen states where the geology makes them more likely. But a recent spate of huge, sudden-appearing caverns is prompting alarm because they're happening in places where they shouldn't, and now seem to be proliferating nationwide. The usual cause: crumbling water, drain and sewer pipes, often neglected by cities with budget problems.
Some experts are calling now for a national study to assess the risk and potential remedies, which could involve high costs for many jurisdictions.
"The financial impact on cities is in the millions of dollars a year around the country," said Bob Brinkmann, a professor of geology, environment and sustainability at Hofstra University.
No government agency keeps track of sinkholes from man-made causes. Most of the scientific research has focused on areas where limestone, caves and natural springs create prime conditions for earthen collapses. Florida has the most.
But scientists who study natural sinkholes say the caverns from infrastructure failures are becoming a bigger problem.
