The heavy rains of the past few days may have played a role in the opening of a sinkhole in the 2100 block of Ellison Place, according to a Villages Community Development District spokesman.
The hole was spotted Tuesday around 2 p.m. The couple that own the home have been up north in Illinois and expected back Wednesday. The house is on a corner of Linley Loop and Ellison Place, across the street from the Ashland Pool. The area was hit with about 3 ½ inches of rain on Monday, according to weather reports.
The hole was about four to six feet deep, and was located near the front corner of the driveway. Villages officials said there was no way to measure how far back the hole went under the driveway.
“There’s no way to tell if it’s going to get any bigger,” a Villages official said at the scene on Tuesday. “We will be monitoring it every hour. We contacted the owners and they are expected to be back in the next day or so.”
If it gets any bigger, “it could be a problem,” a Villages official said. More rain today could add the problem, he said. “Right now, there’s not much we can do, it’s all up to Mother Nature.”
This is the first sinkhole to appear, since the heavy rainfall this week, he said.
Last month, a 20-foot sinkhole opened up near a driveway in the Village of Sabal Chase.
