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http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/americas/02/24/sinkhole.ap/index.html
GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala (AP) -- Emergency crews on Saturday found a third
body in a 330-foot-deep sinkhole that had swallowed a dozen homes and forced
the evacuation of nearly 1,000 people in a crowded Guatemala City
neighborhood.
The body of Domingo Soyos, 53, was carried out of the enormous fissure and
identified by family members, medical crews said.
Soyos was the father of teenagers Irma and David Soyos, whose bodies were
found floating in a river of sewage soon after the sinkhole opened on
Friday.
Residents said there were other people unaccounted for, but emergency crews
could not confirm that.
Officials blamed recent rains and an underground sewage flow from a ruptured
main for the tragedy. The pit emitted foul odors, loud noises and tremors,
shaking the surrounding ground. A rush of water could be heard from its
depths, and authorities feared it could widen or other sinkholes could open
up.
Police evacuated nearby homes and cordoned off a 500-yard perimeter around
the crater. Security officials were on guard for possible looters and
curious onlookers.
Authorities had apparently suspected something was wrong with the site
before the sinkhole appeared.
"We knew, and (the seismology institute) had placed a seismic meter there,"
said Alvaro Rodas, the director of social development for Guatemala City.
"The city government had contracted a robotic camera system to go down
there, but the disaster occurred first."
Cristobal Colon, a spokesman for the municipal water authority, said the
sewage main ruptured after becoming clogged. He said the army had been
considering a controlled explosion to clear the pipe, which carries both
rainwater and sewage for much of the capital.
GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala (AP) -- Emergency crews on Saturday found a third
body in a 330-foot-deep sinkhole that had swallowed a dozen homes and forced
the evacuation of nearly 1,000 people in a crowded Guatemala City
neighborhood.
The body of Domingo Soyos, 53, was carried out of the enormous fissure and
identified by family members, medical crews said.
Soyos was the father of teenagers Irma and David Soyos, whose bodies were
found floating in a river of sewage soon after the sinkhole opened on
Friday.
Residents said there were other people unaccounted for, but emergency crews
could not confirm that.
Officials blamed recent rains and an underground sewage flow from a ruptured
main for the tragedy. The pit emitted foul odors, loud noises and tremors,
shaking the surrounding ground. A rush of water could be heard from its
depths, and authorities feared it could widen or other sinkholes could open
up.
Police evacuated nearby homes and cordoned off a 500-yard perimeter around
the crater. Security officials were on guard for possible looters and
curious onlookers.
Authorities had apparently suspected something was wrong with the site
before the sinkhole appeared.
"We knew, and (the seismology institute) had placed a seismic meter there,"
said Alvaro Rodas, the director of social development for Guatemala City.
"The city government had contracted a robotic camera system to go down
there, but the disaster occurred first."
Cristobal Colon, a spokesman for the municipal water authority, said the
sewage main ruptured after becoming clogged. He said the army had been
considering a controlled explosion to clear the pipe, which carries both
rainwater and sewage for much of the capital.
