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Transportation & Mobility

A Giant Sinkhole Swallowed Two Cars On This Road Last Year. Caltrans Says It’s Now Ready To Use

A gray car — crushed and with its air bags out — sits inside an enormous sinkhole in the middle of a road.
In January 2023, the sinkhole on Iverson Road swallowed two vehicles. All of the passengers survived.
(
Caltrans
)

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Topline:

After undergoing months of costly repairs, Iverson Road in Chatsworth is once again open to the public.

Why it matters: The sinkhole on Iverson Road was 50 feet wide and 45 feet deep, which posed a serious risk for those who live and work in Chatsworth, a suburban community in the San Fernando Valley. In January 2023, a mother and daughter fell into the sinkhole while driving down the road. Then, a pickup truck with more passengers fell on top of them. A team of 50 firefighters was deployed to rescue them.

How much did the repairs cost? The repairs cost taxpayers $14.2 million. This includes a 250-foot-long drainage pipeline made of reinforced concrete, which replaced a damaged metal pipe.

The backstory: The sinkhole was a product of powerful winter storms and record rainfall.

Go deeper: Debris Flows, Evacuation Orders, And Sinkholes

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