Two Strange Sinkholes Closed Down Colorado Roads

As of late, there’s been a strange problem that’s been affecting Coloradans.

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Despite normally being quite rare, sinkholes have been forming a lot more than usual over the past year.

Of these sinkholes, a notable one was last year’s on Colorado Highway 133, closing the road due to its size. 

Strangely enough, this rare natural disaster reared its head twice in one day, with one in Eagle County and one in Denver

Sinkhole Shuts Down I-70 on Tuesday in Eagle County

The sinkhole in Eagle County was no joke. The Colorado Department of Transportation said the sinkhole quickly expanded to become 20 ft long, 13 feet wide, and 8 feet deep. 

According to 9News, it shut down a 10 mile portion of I-70 between the town of Wolcott and Eagle. 

Fortunately, the crews worked tirelessly to fix the problem, and they were able to reopen the affected section of I-70 on the same day. 

On the Same Day, a Sinkhole in Denver Closes Down 46th Avenue

Strangely enough, this was the second sinkhole of the day. 

Over in Denver, a sinkhole in the middle of 46th Avenue opened up, closing down the street. 

KDVR reported on the incident, and showed that it was large enough for a shopping cart to fit inside. 

Despite the road being closed, people still ignored the signs and drove through. Some even moved the signs to drive through, which is very reckless behavior.

How do Sinkholes Form in Colorado?

Sinkholes can form for a variety of reasons, but in Colorado there’s usually one major cause: loose water from rainfall or, more commonly, snowmelt.

According to the United States Geographical Survey, these form when water gets trapped underground in an area with no natural external surface drainage.

The actual sinkhole is formed when the water goes into the subsurface, causing the land above to collapse.

With Colorado having a great snowpack for a second year in a row along with temperatures starting to heat back up, it's no wonder why these sinkholes are happening. It's just strange these two happened on the same day.

Fortunately, no one was injured by either of the sinkholes c