2-13-14 Update on NCM sinkhole recovery & new Corvette Plant Manager

[Joe C.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

Maybe they were digging a subway tunnel..........

[Dan A.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

NCMFeb12-14Sinkhole.jpgNCMFeb12-14Sinkhole2.jpg

[Nicholas L.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

The NCM sent out an email.

[Ara G.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

It's simply amazing that that much dirt was moved from underneath the building....amazing.....that's tons and tons of dirt....

[Gene M.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

WOW, That second picture in post #17 looks like there is no dirt under the remaining floor. The actual sink hole is bigger than it looks from the main floor level. How are they ever going to get the cars out without opening up the building to get lifting cranes over the hole.

[Steven B.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

Michael, I understand about limestone and subsequent sink holes but with this situation where did the soil go?

[John D.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

Sink holes are a common event in Sw corner of PA. I used to be a commercial builder. Every job we did we had so many engineers involved. Had to have test holes drilled and the reports sent to a geologist, etc for review. Lots of times we had to use an NCRS member(Gary Harris ) to have his company drill huge holes down to solid rock. Then have giant cages made of rebar lowered into these holes. Then filled up with special strength concrete. Inspectors on the job drove me crazy. One medical center I build had 24 of these holes. All were connected by grade beams (footers). THe one building was completed in 1987. Last time I inspected it was a few years ago I only found one crack in a hall way.
Appears that museum addition may have to be torn down some to remove the cars or what's left of them.
Remember gang they are only cars. No one was injured. Must be a deep mine issue but who knows.
Fox News had a short segment on the news little while ago about the sink hole.

[Rick A.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

Looks to me like due diligence was NOT accomplished when surveys were performed before building. It would make the entire building; the ongoing development of the race track, etc. all very suspect.

[Rob M.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

Isn't this the area where the Mammoths Caves are?

[Bob B.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

Hi all,

Yes, indeed this is the Mammoth Cave area, so this is not a great shock. Sinkholes are common and are all over fields in the area, but this is mostly due to minor dissolution of the underlying limestone/calcium carbonate rock formations. In less common instances like this one (and the one in Florida where the guy's bedroom with him in it disappeared), there had to be a large void like a cave, which is where the soil and cars all went. Other sinkholes are formed when the roofs of shallow mines or mine shafts collapse.

Some sort of a geotechnical firm would have originally had to have gone in as John D describes and done lots of test borings to determine the suitability of the site for a building such as this. I can't imagine that this wasn't required. If it was, then either the boring grid was too widely spaced, the boring depth was too shallow, or both because of inexperience of the low bidder, or could have been whittled down to the bare minimum required by those having the building built to save what to them are "unnecessary costs." I've also heard of falsification of boring data by someone completing extra logs for borings that were never done so as to make twice the money in half the time.

Being a geologist myself, I'll be watching this story unfold with interest.

Bob

[Edward M.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

I understand that the black 62 that fell into the sink holes is an original FI, big brake, big tank car. This is apparently a picture of her on a better day...

[Robert G.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

The black 62 shown in this link doesn't have the dog dish hubcaps. Could it be a different car? This is the best collection of photos I've seen:

https://plus.google.com/photos/104141664400556036641/albums/5979568634002499569#photos/104141664400556036641/albums/5979568634002499569

[Edward M.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

The black 62 shown in this link doesn't have the dog dish hubcaps. Could it be a different car? This is the best collection of photos I've seen:

https://plus.google.com/photos/10414...68634002499569

Clearly not the same 62.

[Ara G.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

OMG, the 1,000,000th Corvette looks totaled....Horrible...

[Wayne W.]

Re: NCM Sink hole swallows display cars

Shoddy construction too. See any rebar in that concrete? I have rebar ( wire at least ) in my chicken house.