Apparent Sinkhole Drains Small Lake in Florida

An apparent sinkhole has apparently swallowed a small lake in an Ocala, Fla., neighborhood.

Woodland Villages Association property manager Wes Herren told the Ocala Star-Banner that something appeared wrong with the lake on Tuesday afternoon.

By 4:30 p.m., Herren says his phone was bombarded with calls from residents saying the lake was “essentially gone.”

Herren says he called engineers, area contractors and the city’s public works department for help. By nightfall, the lake – which once took up about 5 acres and was up to 8-feet deep in places – was drained.

Woodland Villages has about 700 residents living in estate homes, condominiums, townhomes and patio homes. Herren says a similar incident happened in 1996.