Newest Bay Area Sinkhole in Lithia, FL

The latest sinkhole to form in Florida appears to be located in Lithia, Florida. The location also is the Southeast County Landfill on County Road 672. The sinkhole was discovered Tuesday by the county's public utilities department workers.

At the time, it measured 50 feet across and 4 to 5 feet deep. Over the next few hours, county officials said, the sinkhole continued to grow. It is not known at this time how deep the hole is, or if the natural clay liner underneath the landfill has been breached by the sinkhole.

Daily operations have been diverted to other areas of the landfill, and a segment of a nearby service road has been closed. A portion of the active landfill gas collection system has been shut off within the area impacted by the sinkhole. Authorities have said that the sinkhole "was not caused by normal settling." The landfill is located on 3,300 acres at 15960 County Road 672 in Lithia, FL. The sinkhole is in an area of the original landfill that opened in 1984. The area contains a mix of municipal solid waste and ash from the county's resource recovery facility.