Resident notices West Side sinkhole, alerts city

Street expected to reopen Wednesday

SAN ANTONIO – Crews were working around the clock Tuesday night, trying to repair the second sinkhole to open up in a city street in a little more than a week.

The stretch of Buena Vista Street off of southwest 20th gave out Tuesday morning.

Linda Juarez, who lives close by, said she is thankful her grandchildren weren't with her when she saw the 12-foot-deep sinkhole right in front of her house.

"I always walk with my grandkids at the park," said Juarez.

Juarez said she knew something was wrong this morning, just by the way the cars "sounded" as they drove by, but when she went outside, that's when she said she saw a noticeable change.

"I came outside to see and the cars were jumping every time they would hit the slump," Juarez said. "So I called 311 to let them know we had a slump, but that street was going to be a sinkhole."

When the inspector got there the hole was about 2 feet wide, but by the end of the day, it was as the width of the street.

Juarez is glad she noticed it when she did.

"Because can you imagine if a car is coming?" said Juarez. "They travel so fast in this street. If a car goes in there, it's going to get stuck."

Juarez said she just hopes now that SAWS will not only fix this sink hole, but also prevent others from happening around town.

That other sinkhole formed on Dec. 4 on Quintana Road. Two cars became trapped and one driver was killed.

"We had a sinkhole right here about in May," said Juarez. "This one just started yesterday because I can hear the difference when the cars are passing by."

A spokesman for SAWS said they do not know what caused this to happen, but that the pipes in the area are "older" and that this was an area that was already set for repairs.

Crews expect to open up the street again on Wednesday morning.


About the Author

Stephanie Serna is a weekday anchor on Good Morning San Antonio and GMSA at 9 a.m. She joined the KSAT 12 News team in November 2009 as a general assignments reporter.

Recommended Videos