Massive Florida Sinkhole That Swallowed Man In 2013 Reopens

A massive sinkhole that killed a man over 10 years ago has reopened again in Seffner, Florida, a community roughly 15 miles east of Tampa, according to CNN. Hillsborough County officials dispatched crews Monday morning (July 17) to refill the hole, which claimed the life of 37-year-old Jeffery Bush back in 2013.

Officials were notified about the hold reopening last week and contracted a sinkhole remediator to help. Authorities haven't said what caused the sinkhole to reappear, but they assured nearby residents that it's safe to stay in their homes, a news release said. The site is also closed to the public.

Jeremy Bush, Jeff's brother, said the sinkhole's reemergence is a terrifying reminder of what happened that fateful night in February 2013. He remembers his brother screaming out for help before the sinkhole engulfed his entire bedroom. Jeff Bush's body was never recovered.

“Ain’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about my brother,” he told CNN affiliate WTFS. “Stuff that happened in that house that night, and hearing my brother yell and scream for me to help him, I hear it all the time.”

Jeremy and four other people living in the home at the time were forced to leave the home at the time. Hillsborough County then purchased the property and the home next to it so no one lived close to the dangerous sinkhole, which was filled following Jeff Bush's death. The sinkhole reopened again in 2015 and filled up again.

Sinkholes are common in Florida thanks to the bedrock being made of limestone and other carbonate rock, according to the state's Department of Environmental Protection. When acidic ground or rainwater erodes the rock, creating voids that will collapse from heavy weight on top of the surface.