Three holes open up in the ground on a golf course in The Villages

THE VILLAGES, Fla. — Three big holes have opened up on a golf course in the Villages, prompting closures to the surrounding area.

Fire officials were called out Saturday morning when the holes appeared between the Moyer Recreation Center and the golf course.

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The Villages Sinkhole 3

“We came out and discovered three depressions within the pond area,” said Villages Fire Chief Edmund Cain. “Approximately, I would say with the three of them, they are about 200 feet in diameter, if that.”

Fire officials originally identified the holes as sinkholes, but engineers said the holes are actually considered depressions. Those depressions are near a retention pond that eventually drained the water.

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“There’s a lot of balls in there we were talking earlier about going and getting some of those balls out there,” said golfer Caroline Stewart.

Officials have blocked the area off for safety.

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“We have not seen any growth in the three depressions,” Cain said. “There are bodies of water around the villages that have had sinkholes where the whole thing has disappeared.”

“We have turned it over to an engineering firm that works with The Villages so they’ll come in, do their study and come up with a proposal as to how they are going to take care of the situation,” Cain added.

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