'This was 100 percent preventable': California sinkhole swallows third car in 2 weeks as drivers ignore signs
SAN JOAQUIN, CALIFORNIA: A two-lane road in San Joaquin, California, which was severely damaged by a huge sinkhole splitting it into two parts, has now swallowed a third car. According to California Highway authorities, drivers continue to ignore the clearly marked signs of ‘road closure,’ and also shared the pictures of vehicles who drove straight into it. A video made of the damaged site on Tuesday, January 17, shows how the sinkhole broke out while California Highway Patrol claims that a compromised retention pond caused the road to deteriorate to a point of splitting.
The clip also indicates the water seeping through the roadway and affecting the material from underneath the pavement. But it got worse soon after the highway patrol posted an update on the unsafe conditions and placed ‘road closed’ and ‘flooded’ signs nearby. Though the first car to get swallowed by the massive sinkhole happened on the first day when signs were posted, the following day, the San Joaquin road totally collapsed, reports CBS News.
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'This can't be real'
As per a Facebook post by California Highway Patrol, the authorities appealed to the commuters to not ignore the signs and attempt to drive around placed barricades, and also warned them that the current damaged site may have to face a ‘long term closure.’ It didn’t take long before another driver committed same mistake, a week later, and drove straight in. "THIS CAN'T BE REAL!" California Highway Patrol captioned on Facebook with photos from the incident. "We're at a loss for words. If only there were signs and/or barriers that could have prevented this." In the photograph shared by the authorities, the massive hole in the roadway is ‘almost a car length wide.
'The signs are clear, visible'
It didn’t stop there! Even after the law enforcement agency desperate attempts to make people pay heed to the signs and warnings, the third car smashed into sinkhole on Saturday, January 28. It happened again. This time the post on Facebook read, “We can’t make this stuff up. This was 100 percent preventable. There is no excuse. The signs are clear, visible, and unobstructed. The driver was issued a citation. If you pass a road closure you are also subject to a citation.” It further said, “ROAD CLOSED” signs and barricades are strategically placed for your safety. DO NOT drive past a road closure. If you come across a road closure, turn around, and find a different route. This incident occurred on Kasson Road.”