BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WXYZ) — A Bloomfield Township family had a startling start to their day Wednesday morning when a sinkhole swallowed a car right in their driveway, with a young driver believed to be inside.
Heavy rains and possible culvert issues may be to blame for the collapse, which required a local wrecker service and the fire department to pull off the unusual rescue.
Watch Jeffrey Lindblom's video report below:
The incident happened around 8 a.m. at a home on Sattalee Road in the area of Squirrel Road and Long Lake Road.
Bill Byers, owner of Byers Wrecker Service, responded to the scene.
"Gentleman called and said he had a car in a sinkhole in his driveway," Byers said.
Byers said the service call easily ranks in his top five craziest encounters in his many years in the business.
"I’ve been doing this a long time. I’ve seen a lot of things. It’s probably in the three range," Byers said.
Henry Pessina lives a couple of doors down and knows the teenager who lives at the home. He believes the teen was in the car at the time of the collapse.
"It’s in the driveway — gone," Pessina said. "I thought the car was just in the ditch at first."
"Young man was getting ready to go to school this morning and it dropped," Byers said.
Outside of the home, the homeowner and his son appeared to be walking around assessing the damage. Both looked OK and did not wish to provide comment.
Neighbor Bruce Abbott also witnessed the aftermath.
"Wouldn’t expect to see a sinkhole in Michigan," Abbott said. "Kind of amazing, dangerous and would give you pause."
Neighbors think culverts might be to blame, possibly wearing away the soil beneath the driveway.
"It had to do with the heavy rains that washed the driveway out," Byers said.
Byers said time was of the essence since the call came in, as the car had sunk 4 to 5 additional feet before his crew arrived. Because of the dangers to utilities beneath the ground, they called the Bloomfield Township Fire Department for help.
"Making sure everything was safe. We just literally picked the car up straight out of the hole, spun it around on a rotator and set it in the street and leveled it out," Byers said.
Bloomfield Township officials said they do not own the culvert. While the incident is still under investigation, adjacent infrastructure does not seem to be impacted at this time. The township will provide an update when they find out who owns the culvert.
"Kind of scares me for my own car and the property I live in," Pessina said. "I’d be distraught for a long time."
"That’s going to be an interesting insurance report," Abbott said.
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