EN
JA
CNSinkhole Threatens Town
The small Texas town of Daisetta, just north of Houston and home to around 1,000 residents, has been threatened by a monstrous sinkhole. Over the last two days the sinkhole has swallowed oil tanks and barrels, tires, telephone poles and several vehicles that were parked in the area. While residents remain worried, officials have said that further growth of the sinkhole would probably be very slow and there is little danger to surrounding homes. There are about 100 homes in the immediate vicinity of the sinkhole and a school less than a quarter of a mile away.
The sinkhole started as a small 20 foot whole on Wednesday and by Friday had reached 900 feet wide and over 250 feet deep. Residents began to fear that the increasing size would engulf the entire town. Officials eased those fears somewhat on Friday, saying that the size of the hole seems to be stabilizing.
Geologists are still trying to figure out what caused the sinkhole. Daisetta sits on a salt dome, a natural formation created below the ground over millions of years where oil and natural gas have accumulated. One possibility is that drilling for oil in the town may have weakened the top of the dome or that groundwater has leaked into the dome and cracked it. Geologists plan more tests of the surrounding area, but caution that a true assessment of the stability of the ground won't be known for three months.
