A soccer field in Illinois is closed indefinitely after a literal sinkhole swallowed a light pole and benches. The athletic complex that collapsed is built on top of an active mine, which seems like a horrible idea.
Video of the incident is wild!
Gordon Moore Park is located in Alton, Illinois. It houses two full-length soccer fields and a full 100-yard football field, with multi-purpose lines. Three large light poles previously separated the two soccer fields.
Not anymore!
Surveillance video from the park shows the moment when the ground crumbled under itself and opened a massive sinkhole at about 9:15 a.m. on Wednesday. The collapse brought a light pole and multiple metal benches with it. Fortunately, nobody was using the field at the time. That could’ve been bad.
Alton Parks and Rec director Michael Haynes estimates that the hole is approximately 100-feet wide and 30-feet deep. Drone video of the aftermath puts the size in perspective. It’s huge!
Haynes and Alton are investigating the incident.
According to The Telegraph, the collapse stemmed from an active limestone mine underneath the field. A quarry is located on Gordon Moore Park’s west side. Bluff City Minerals has been mining under that section of Alton for many years.
The New Frontier Materials underground mine in Alton, IL today experienced a surface subsidence and opened a sink hole at Gordon Moore City Park. The impacted area has been secured and will remain off limits for the foreseeable future while inspectors and experts examine the mine and conduct repairs.
— New Frontier Materials spokesman Matt Barkett on behalf of Bluff City Minerals
To build a field on top of a quarry may not have been the best idea…
And it gets even more confusing! A small creek that runs between the park and the quarry had a sinkhole about 30 feet in diameter collapse into the mine a few decades ago. This has happened before.
Haynes and Alton are going to continue their investigation into Wednesday’s collapse even though it seems pretty straightforward. A mine caused unstable ground. The unstable ground crumbled on top of itself. The sinkhole took the turf, benches and light pole with it.