A sinkhole at a Cadillac dealership in Leominster, Massachusetts, swallows several vehicles.
Leominster, Massachusetts, recently had extreme rainfall that wrecked devastation around the city. About an hour west of Boston, roads were held out, homes and businesses flooded, and—as is common when a lot of water starts sloshing around above ground or below—sinkholes opened up at various locations across the town. In particular, one sinkhole was ravenous for Cadillacs.
Few people ever expect their car to be swallowed up by the ground due to a flood, which can be particularly harmful to automobiles. After a flash flood, that is exactly what occurred to three Cadillac SUVs at a Massachusetts dealer. The incident is just one of numerous accounts of how the natural disaster caused harm.
In Leominster, Massachusetts, a torrential downpour on September 11th caused so much damage that workers are still estimating the final bill. Some of the Durand Cadillacs on Main Street were also damaged. Water entered the dealership but also washed away a lot of silt from under one of the property’s corners.
The earth collapsed while three Cadillac SUVs were parked on top of it. Parts of the autos plummeted into the 15-foot-deep abyss below. Specialized cranes that could pull each SUV completely out of the ground were needed to recover the SUVs. The three automobiles are probably worth close to $200,000 when combined.
Leominster Cadillac, located directly on the Nashua River’s bank, nearly lost three vehicles to the severe water, as seen in the dramatic video below.
A large portion of the front patio area collapsed into a mess of pavers as a sinkhole under it suddenly appeared. It may have caused some damage because it moved three Cadillacs—two XT5s and an XT6—out of the way.
Both positive and terrible news are presented here. The Corvette Museum sinkhole went viral a few years ago. Still, unlike that incident, the cars weren’t destroyed by the sinkhole’s quick and deep opening, as happened to some of the sad sports cars in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
But, there’s a potential that these Cadillacs may need some repairs to be marketable, and if there has been flooding, even worse. The lack of flood insurance is bad news (for the dealership). Therefore, it appears that the dealer’s funds will cover any reconditioning.
According to CBS News, the owners of the three automobiles don’t know the full amount of the damage to them and don’t have flood insurance. Unsurprisingly, the property that has been destroyed the most due to the flash flood is distant from the submerged Cadillacs. A lot of houses had their foundations pushed off.
All of the area’s roads were devastated. It’s a marvel that there haven’t been any fatalities, said Mayor Dean Mazzarella, to put it simply. We saved so many people last night that we aren’t even sure of the total.
On a different occasion, a couple moved their car just before a 15-foot sinkhole appeared where it had previously been. Since the location is not in a flood plain, the damage to local inhabitants could cost much money in the long run.
Slings fastened to the wheels raised at least one vehicle out of the pit, as seen in the video. The dealership owner, Rick Durand, told CBS News that he hoped to get the cars out of the pit without harming them further.
After that, rebuilding the patio and performing other necessary work to get the dealership back in top condition will be a drawn-out (and probably expensive) process.
Leominster will take a while to recover from the disastrous floods, and dozens of owners will have to deal with cars that have been flooded-damaged and washed away.
Where limestone, carbonate rock, salt beds, or rocks are present below the surface, sinkholes are frequently found, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Spaces underground become available as the rocks are broken down by flooding and groundwater, causing the structure to collapse and making the area unstable.