Apparent sinkhole opens up on Jacksonville's Westside

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Public works crews were hard at work Thursday night after what appeared to be a massive sinkhole opened up near Ringhaver Park on Jacksonville's Westside.

A viewer first alerted News4Jax to the sinkhole on 118th Street near Sundown Drive about 4:15 p.m., submitting an image that showed a car stuck nose first in the hole with its rear wheels in the air.

JEA workers said an old water pipe beneath the roadway broke, sending water gushing out that washed away the ground underneath the asphalt.

The city learned of the hole after someone driving a sport-utility vehicle saw water pooling on the road and tried to drive through it, workers said. Instead, the roadway collapsed and the SUV fell in.

By 9 p.m., the hole was large enough that city workers could stand inside. The hole currently measures about six feet deep and 35 feet wide.

The road is expected to be repaired and reopened to traffic by late Friday morning.