Backyard sinkhole formed in Arnold during Tuesday’s rain

ARNOLD, Mo. – With the torrential rain earlier this week, we had not only flooding but another big problem for some Arnold residents as a massive sinkhole opened on Tuesday morning.

At about 9:45 a.m. Thursday, homeowner Bonnie Smith got word of a big problem in her neighbor’s yard.

“The policeman escorted me down the hill to show me what had happened. Apparently, this pipe behind me exploded and the yard started caving in,” Smith said.

Smith was told potentially the pipe was put in many years ago to expand the length of their backyards.

“It looks like this large pipe was put in about 100 feet farther up to divert the water off the creek bed, through the pipes, through these yards, and then back into the creek bed,” she said.

With other recent erosion issues caused by this creek, they’re trying to find out who the owner is.

“Someone said we should have known that was under there. Well, how could we know that was under there? We cannot see through the ground,” Smith said. “If you look at the pipe itself, the water running through it 30-plus years, perhaps. The erosion that’s taken place within the pipe, plus the still water sitting in there, it’s not a wonder this happened. It’s like it just exploded.”

The residents who live near the sinkhole are allowed to return to their homes after being displaced for two nights but Smith says the problem is still there and with homeowners’ insurance not covering the damage since it was an act of God. She just wants to know who’s responsible.

“But the lady who lives here on the end still has the issue. What is she going to do? She is 94 years old and she needs help. And somebody—either the sewer district, the (Army) Corps of Engineers, the city of Arnold—has got to come and help this homeowner,” Smith said.

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