A sinkhole in Florida that in 2013 consumed and killed a person on his property has opened for a 3rd time, officers stated this week.

Hillsborough County officers stated in a statement that the sinkhole in Seffner, Fla., a suburb of Tampa, had reopened once more after opening in 2013 and 2015. County officers assessed the location of the opening on Monday and instructed neighbors within the space that they didn’t must evacuate as there was no hazard to their houses.

The sinkhole is about 19 toes deep and 19 toes broad at its broadest level, stated Todd Pratt, a Hillsborough County spokesman, in an e mail on Thursday. “The sinkhole is pretty much a repeat of when it reopened in 2015,” Mr. Pratt stated. In 2013, it was about 20 toes deep and 20 toes broad.

Engineers decided this week that there was no indication that the sinkhole would broaden, so residents may “remain safely in their homes,” in line with the county’s assertion.

Officials plan to fill the sinkhole with about 150 tons of gravel and water, which ought to take about two to a few days, Mr. Pratt stated. A time-frame for filling the sinkhole has not been set, and within the meantime, it has been surrounded by two fences, Mr. Pratt stated.

The sinkhole opened up in early 2013, swallowing and burying Jeffrey Bush, 36, who was presumed lifeless after rescue crews couldn’t discover him. At the time, the sinkhole was 20 toes deep and 30 toes broad, and it expanded, prompting officers to sentence Mr. Bush’s dwelling.

The land has since been acquired by Hillsborough County as conservation property, placing the county in control of its maintenance.

Sinkholes can type when the bottom erodes beneath the floor and may now not help the land above it, they usually can develop all of a sudden or slowly over time, in line with United States Geological Survey.

Sinkholes are notably frequent in Florida as a result of the state is underlain by carbonate rocks, in line with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Carbonate rocks could be vulnerable to dissolve in water over time, which may result in sinkholes, in line with the state’s Environmental Protection Department.

Florida’s historical past of sinkholes has been effectively documented. In 2017, seven homes were condemned in Land O’Lakes, Fla., north of Tampa, after a sinkhole opened up after which expanded to a width of 260 toes.

In 2013, a whole lot of company at a resort in Clermont, Fla., needed to evacuate after an estimated 60-foot-wide sinkhole opened up and swallowed a part of a constructing on the property. No one was injured.

A report in 2010 by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation discovered that from 2006 to 2010 sinkhole insurance coverage claims within the state exceeded $1.4 billion.