Sinkhole discovered at St. Clair County International Airport
ST. CLAIR COUNTY, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - A sinkhole has popped up at the St. Clair County International Airport.
CBS News Detroit took a drive with St. Clair County International Airport director Catie Fiore across the runways of the Kimball-based airport to get a first-hand look at the sinkhole. Fiore says it was found during daily morning inspections during the first week of June.
"This was discovered on a Tuesday morning run and once it was discovered, we shut down the runway," Fiore said.
The hole only goes down a couple of feet, and Fiore says she and her team have learned a lot and what caused it.
"The base underneath it eroded away, or it's ran away, so there's a void underneath the top layer that we're currently walking on, and basically there's enough pressure, there's enough weight, that the sinkhole appears," Fiore said.
After testing, she says the void is about 20 feet away in a concrete pipe that runs beneath the runway.
"There's no telling how that void happened or the pipe became compromised. At that stage, it's what are our next steps, how do we resolve it, do we have to dig out the entire concrete pipe? Can we just do a patchwork?" Fiore said.
She adds the airport currently has a request for proposals from engineering consulting firms to find a permanent and safe solution. In the meantime, the impacted runway remains closed to keep pilots safe from potential harm.
Although it may be small, rain warrants some concern with its growth, calling for consistent monitoring when rainfall occurs. For now, they keep it covered while they await the next steps.