House damaged by sinkhole in Seffner, Tampa
BBC
Rescue teams in Florida have called off their efforts to recover the
body of a man swallowed by a huge sinkhole under his home.
The house, in the suburbs of Tampa, will be destroyed, officials said.
Sinkholes are common in certain parts of Florida, although most are
quite small, reports the BBC.
"At this point it's really not possible to recover the body,"
Hillsborough County Administrator Mike Merrill said.
He added: "We are dealing with a very unusual sinkhole."
Experts are trying to ascertain how far the underground cavity reaches
and whether more homes are at risk. Nearby houses have all been
evacuated.
Early estimates put it at 20ft (6m) deep and 30ft in diameter but
officials have created a 100ft-wide safety zone fearing the top of the
sinkhole is growing.
Neighbour Soliris Gonzalez, 31, said: "I've had nightmares. In my
dreams I keep checking for cracks in the house."
Bush's tearful brother, Jeremy, lay flowers and a stuffed toy near the
house on Saturday.
He was in the house on Thursday night and heard his brother scream as
the concrete floor under the bedroom gave way.
Bush rushed into his brother's room and jumped into the hole to try to
save him but had to be rescued himself by police.
Bush told reporters that someone had visited the four-bedroom house
some weeks ago to check for sinkholes and other issues but found nothing
wrong.
"And a couple of months later, my brother dies. In a sinkhole," he
said.
Florida state law requires home insurers to provide coverage against
sinkholes.
Experts say much of Florida sits on a system of limestone caverns which
are subject to water erosion, causing them to collapse
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