Pierre Van Ryneveld nature area closure due to developed sinkhole

The metro has announced the closure of the Pierre Van Ryneveld nature area for the public after it discovered a formation of a sinkhole in the area.

Metro’s spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said the City was first alerted of the sinkhole on December 3, adding that the city then dispatched a team of experts to assess the area.

“The component responsible for nature conservation within the metropolitan municipality convened geological and geotechnical engineers on-site to assess the developing hole. The hole is located along the eastern boundary of the nature area bordering Fouche Street,” Mashigo added.

He said upon the expert’s assessment and calculations done by the team it was then discovered the sinkhole was approximately 30m deep and 13m in diameter.

“A decision has since been taken to close the Pierre van Ryneveld nature area to the public until further notice to allow further assessments to be carried out and safeguarding measures to be put in place.

“The sinkhole remains unstable and indications point to it continuing to expand. The nature area is mostly used as an attraction for walking and birding.”

Recently Centurion has been struck by an avalanche of sinkholes, while the City was struggling to fix other ones. The metro managed to fix two sinkholes in Alexander Road and the corner of Potgieter and Clifton roads this year.

At the same time, the Nxusani family was forced to move out of their family home after they were told it was unsafe for them to continue staying at their home due to a sinkhole forming nearby. A 6m sinkhole developed near the family home in Clifton Road last month following heavy rainfall that turned the area into a danger zone.

In the past months, a sinkhole occurred on the corner of Snake Valley and Paul Kruger roads near the Zwartkop air force base during heavy rainfall. The roads remain closed.

ALSO READ: Residents in Centurion are reminded to avoid roads affected by road closures due to sinkholes.

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