Driver ignores road block, plows into sinkhole

An 8-inch water main broke near the intersection of Astrozon Boulevard and South Chelton Road Thursday afternoon, shutting down lanes of Astrozon and causing a massive sinkhole.

Astrozon remains closed in both directions between Nadine Circle and Chelton.

As officers were closing down the road around 1:30 p.m., the driver of a pickup truck ignored the barricade and drove her vehicle into the sinkhole, according to police.

The driver did not suffer any injuries and the vehicle was towed out with minimal damage.

“Now that’s crazy,” said Harvey Flowers, who lives off Astrozon. “How she got around those barricades is beyond belief, especially hitting a hole that big.”

The hole created by the water was at least six feet deep and just as wide.

“That would definitely be an abrupt stop,” said Ralph Bilbay, another neighbor. “To get out of [the truck] would be very scary, I’d be frightened.”

Several homes went hours without water, including homes on Astrozon Circle, Lamplighter Circle and Lexington Village Lane.

Late Thursday, a spokesman for the repair work said he expects repair crews to be working through Friday morning.

He said it’s not just the water main piping that needs to be replaced but feeder pipes as well.

That will likely keep a small portion of Astrozon closed through the Friday morning rush hour.

Fortunately, repair crews were able to reroute water to many of the homes left without water for most of the afternoon and early evening.