The Most Amazing Thing About the Guatemala Sinkhole? It’s Not
Even a Sinkhole That Guatemala sinkhole? The one approximately
the size of our Earth, practically? Turns out it’s not a
sinkhole but a “piping feature,” according to Discovery News.
Geologist Sam Bonis told the Web site that sinkholes occur on
land that sits atop solid bedrock; piping features, however,
refer to holes that form above less solid ground. Discovery News
reports that Guatemala City “is built on pumice fill—ash flows
made up of loose, gravel-like particles deposited during ancient
volcanic eruptions. In places, the debris is piled over 600 feet
thick, filling up what would otherwise be a v-shaped valley of
faulted bedrock.” Fixing the city’s faulty sewage system would
help to prevent future piping features. “When you have water
flowing from storm water runoff, a sewage pipe, or any kind of
strong flow, it eats away at the loose material. We don't know
how long it has to go on before it collapses. But once it starts
collapsing, God help