May this sinkhole be currently viewed? Will this water quality pond be repaired or allowed to remain as a recharge circuit to the aquifer?
Whether it would have averted the problem or not, it seems the park authorities should have forseen this possibility and kept the culverts clear of debris. Fritz, with hindsight ________________________________ From: Logan McNatt [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Saturday, January 28, 2012 4:49 PM To: Texas Cavers Subject: [Texascavers] new sinkhole drains pond in south Austin Thanks to Peter Sprouse and Zara Environmental for forwarding this information; original source unknown. The early morning storm of Jan 25th dumped 5 to 7 inches of rain over much of Travis and Bastrop counties in 6 to 10 hours. I didn't see anything in the news about this sinkhole. The huge water quality pond located at Mopac and William Cannon "Shops at Arbor Trails" (inc. Costco, Target, Chuy's etc) went from full to empty during this morning's storm. Over the past year, it was speculated that the pond was leaking. Few storms had tested the pond over the last few months, but this one clearly revealed the issue. The liner gave way (split) to reveal a large sinkhole which slurped down all the water. Musta been one helluva whirlpool. (not cave related) Bastrop State Park got hit real hard by the storm because the fire removed all the ground cover. The old Civilian Conservation Corps culverts had gotten clogged during the long drought, so the water overflowed and took out large chunks of the park roads. See the following link for photos. https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Friends-of-the-Lost-Pines-State-Parks-Bastrop-and-Buescher-State-Parks/313894840447 Logan
