Sinkhole nearly swallows mower at university campus in Fairbanks

FAIRBANKSA sinkhole opened up directly beneath a University of Alaska Fairbanks employee this morning, nearly swallowing a riding lawn-mower the size of a golf-cart.

A UAF facilities services employee was mowing the lawn on the hillside near the Taku parking lot on the east side of campus just off Farmers Loop when the ground opened up beneath the mower's front left wheel.

The hole was approximately 10 feet deep, according to estimates. At the surface the hole was about 4 feet by 5 feet across and widened a bit below, according to university spokeswoman Marmian Grimes.

No one was injured in the incident, Grimes said. Facilities Services has since filled in the hole.

A handful of sinkholes have been reported in Fairbanks in the last week, following several weeks of heavy rainfall. The university has dealt with at least three sinkholes on its property one in front of the West Ridge research building and another on the east side of campus, in addition to the one that opened this morning.

Sinkholes can be caused by a number of phenomena. Occasionally they appear due to subsurface erosion from groundwater and can take place in areas where ground has been filled in and not compacted.

Darrin Edson, the superintendent of operations for facilities services, said it's unclear exactly what caused this particular sinkhole, but he said it probably didn't come from recent changes to the soil in the area.

"That hasn't been touched in over 15 years. There's a lot of frozen soils in that area so my guess would be something down below thawed and created a cavity over time, and it just collapsed on that cavity," Edson said. "All the water we've had lately just adds to it and speeds it up."

Contact staff writer Weston Morrow at 459-7520. Follow him on Twitter: @FDNMschools.

Contact staff writer Weston Morrow at 459-7520. Follow him on Twitter: @FDNMschools.

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Sinkhole nearly swallows mower at university campus in Fairbanks