Seffner Sinkhole Homeowner: 'God Has a Plan' (Photos and Video)

Essentially just the back walls remain standing at 240 Faithway Drive in Seffner, where Leland Buddy Wicker, 75, and his family stood watching for a second day of demolition following the Feb. 28 sinkhole that claimed the life of family friend, Jeffrey Bush, 36.

Shortly before leaving the site today, March 4, at around 12:30 p.m., Wicker took a moment to discuss the ordeal his family has been living through, with the loss of a home that he purchased in 1974 and that for every year since has been open for holiday and weekly family dinners and get-togethers.

"You stand here, and everything you ever worked for goes down the drains," he said. "It hurts, and it's something I pinch myself in the morning [and say], 'Are you awake? Wake up! This is not happening."

But it has happened, and Wicker said first and foremost his family is respectful and mournful of the death of Bush, who had asked for permission from Wicker to stay at the home temporarily for a few months.

He was staying in the room that once housed 2-year-old Hannah Wicker, who is the daughter of Jeremy Wicker, who had attempted on that fateful night to save his brother's life, according to Wicker's granddaughter, Sally Stephens.

That workers were able to retrieve a good portion of family mementos, pictures, heirlooms and artifacts brings the family a great sense of relief.

"It means the world to me," Wicker said. "I would have rather had Jeff returned, but they tell me that's not, one of those . . ."

Wicker's voice trailed off as he tried to find the right words. Soon, he rested on these: "God had a plan, God has a reason for everything going on."

When asked to give his thoughts about Bush, Wicker said: "He's the type of guy that he'd give you the shirt off of his back, and if he had a dime and you needed a quarter, he'd use that to get the other 15 cents. That's the type of guy he was."

"Like I said," he added later, "God had a reason and we're not to question what God does."

Throughout the day, workers strived tirelessly to retrieve family belongings safely.

From about the time Wicker left the scene to about 2 p.m., workers using a cherry picker, or manned boom lift, were guided into the home to remove final pieces of furniture, photos and wall-hangings.

"Anything and everything we get for them, we're working very hard to do that," said Hillsorough County spokesperson Willie Puz.

The last remnants of the home and the debris were expected to be cleared today.

• Update: The final walls came down just before 3 p.m.

The next task at hand will be to determine "the size and the dimensions" of the sinkhole, Puz said. Then work will begin "to stabilize the hole and move forward."

Future action will also involve the homes on either side of the once-standing, blue house at 240 Faithway Drive.

Both the green house to the west, and the yellow house to the east, have been declared condemned. Bright neon signs attesting to that fact hang in the front windows, sporting the same words that once adorned the front window at the Wicker home. The notice reads: "This building is declared unfit for human habitation and ordered vacated. It is unlawful for any reason to enter this building."

As for Wicker, he finds strength in his faith as his large and extended family works out the details of the family's next move. As Wicker put it: "If I didn't have Christ in my heart, I wouldn't have made it."

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BRANDON PATCH SEFFNER SINKHOLE COVERAGE (Through March 5):

• Video: Final Walls Come Down on Seffner Sinkhole at 240 Faithway Drive

• 2nd Seffner Sinkhole Under Investigation as Stabilization Work Continues

• Seffner Sinkhole Victim Officially 'Presumed' Deceased

• Readers React to Seffner Sinkhole Tragedy

• Family Treasures Salvaged from Seffner Sinkhole Demolition
  

• Demolition Under Way at Seffner Sinkhole Site

• More Photos From the Seffner Sinkhole Site

• Seffner Sinkhole Operation Readies for Impending Demolition

• 3rd Home 'Compromised' at Seffner Sinkhole Site; Relief Fund Established

• Video: Deputy Douglas Duvall Recounts Seffner Sinkhole Heroics

• Situation 'Extremely Unsafe' at Seffner Sinkhole Site

• Family Member Recalls Horror of Seffner Sinkhole Tragedy

• Photos From the Scene of Sinkhole in Seffner

• Video: Hillsborough Fire Chief Discusses Seffner Sinkhole

• Hillsborough County Among Top 10 Sinkhole-Prone Florida Counties

• Update: Sinkhole Swallows Seffner Man Sleeping in Bed

• Video of Deputy Who Worked To Save Men From Sinkhole 
  

• Video: Man Could Hear His Brother Screaming

• Video: Fire Chief Answers Questions             

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