A massive crater has opened up in a gated community in Houston, prompting the evacuation of eight homes, according to local emergency services.
Ground collapsed Saturday morning in the plaza area between two rows of luxury townhomes in Sutherland Terrace Place, part of the Memorial Green community in the leafy west Houston suburb of Memorial.
The Houston Fire Department posted on X, formerly Twitter, Saturday afternoon to say it was on the scene and posted photos of the damage, showing bricks, concrete and dirt spilling into an empty crater.
Firefighters said no one was injured, but eight homes had been evacuated as a precaution and building engineers were on site to assess the damage.
Houston Fire Department
Houston Fire Department Capt. Beau Moreno told local television station ABC 13 that an underground floodwater cistern, a type of water storage tank, collapsed, creating a large crater.
Following heavy rains in the area, Moreno said it appeared the cistern suffered a catastrophic failure.
“This is not a sinkhole,” Moreno explained. “This is an underground artificial structure designed to hold back floodwaters in this area.”
ABC 13 also spoke to a man whose parents’ house “started shaking” as the hole emerged in the square. The station also spoke to a local resident, Rick Mckee, who said he was in shock.
“It’s a big hole,” he said. “It’s a very big hole.”
Houston Public Works told the network that the community was responsible for repairs because the collapse occurred on private property.
Construction of the Memorial Green complex began in 2016 and is described on its website as “an exclusive gated community,” with “luxury homes” and a “vibrant urban plaza.”
The project includes 91 single-family homes, community parks, upscale restaurants, and office and retail space on more than 14 acres. Homes average 2,500 to 3,400 square feet and are priced starting at $1,279,000.
It was developed by Midway and the homes evacuated by the sinkhole were built by Pelican Builders. Newsweek contacted both parties for comment via email outside of normal business hours.
Houston was hit by torrential rains and experienced flash flooding when Hurricane Beryl made landfall earlier on July 8. In just six hours, the city received double the usual amount of rain for the entire month of July.
After wreaking havoc in the Caribbean, the storm left 26 people dead in Houston. Residents of Texas, Louisiana, Vermont, the Caribbean and Canada also lost their lives.
The damage is estimated at around $3.3 billion in the United States, the Caribbean and Mexico.
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