Friday, March 29, 2013
The latest potential sinkhole was reported on Peach Avenue in Seffner, about 3 miles from the catastrophic sinkhole that claimed the life of Jeffrey Bush on Feb. 28.
Reports this week have surfaced about a potential sinkhole in Seffner, just weeks after the Feb. 28 catastrophic sinkhole that claimed the life of Jeffrey Bush at 240 Faithway Drive. The latest report, concerning a duplex on Peach Avenue, follows the reported opening of a sinkhole March 23, between two homes on Lake Shore Ranch Drive in Seffner. It follows the sinkhole discovered on Cedar Tree Lane, which followed by days the Feb. 28 sinkhole that claimed the life of Bush, who died after the bedroom he was sleeping in was consumed by a catastrophic sinkhole at 240 Faithway Drive. That sinkhole, described as "unprecedented," caused the home to be demolished and the two neighboring homes to be evacuated, leaving many families, including …
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue was on the scene March 23 in Seffner for the opening of another sinkhole, the third once since Jeffrey Bush died in a sinkhole at 240 Faithway Drive on Feb. 28.
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue was on the scene Saturday night, March 23, where a sinkhole reportedly opened between two homes in Seffner. It was the third reported sinkhole in Seffner since Feb. 28, when Jeffrey Bush 36, died after the bedroom he was sleeping in was consumed by a catastrophic sinkhole at 240 Faithway Drive. That sinkhole, described as "unprecedented," caused the home to be demolished and the two neighboring homes to be evacuated, leaving many families, including the Wicker and Jaudon families, displaced. A second sinkhole opened up in Seffner days later, between two homes, at 1204 and 1206 Cedar Tree Lane. The sinkhole that opened March 23, at around 7 p.m., also opened between two homes, at 1427 Lake Shore Ranch Drive…
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Members of the Wicker family speak about what's left when, as David Wicker put it, "everything you have is taken away in the blink of an eye." Family members pay tribute to Seffner sinkhole victim Jeffrey Bush and talk about the importance of family.
Members of the Wicker family gathered under clear skies Tuesday morning, March 5, before the tract of land that once housed the building they called home. Standing tall in the midst of that lot now covered by fresh, brown dirt stands a stately oak tree, the same tree Leland Buddy Wicker planted with his young and growing family in 1976, two years after they moved to their Seffner neighborhood, nestled between Parsons Avenue and Wheeler and Kingsway roads. "I remember coming out with my parents, when just the foundation and plumbing pipes were sticking out of" the land," Leland Norman Wicker said. "My parents went out to my aunt, who owns some property out in McIntosh, and they bought [that] tree. I remember planting that tree in the yard…
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
A second Seffner sinkhole was discovered March 4 less than 2 miles from where Jeffrey Bush lost his life in a massive sinkhole at 240 Faithway Drive. Houses on either side of the that Wicker home have been declared unfit for human habitation.
A second sinkhole has been reported in Seffner, less than 2 miles from the "unprecedented" sinkhole that claimed the life of Jeffrey Bush, 36, at 240 Faithway Drive, where stabilzation work continues today, March 5. Three homes have been condemned after that sinkhole opened up and swallowed Bush as he awoke with a start in the back bedroom Feb. 28, shortly before 11 p.m. Demolition was completed March 4 at the house at 240 Faithway Drive, owned by Leland Buddy Wicker. Neon-orange "vacate" signs were visible on homes on either side of that structure as the demolition work got under way for a second, and final, day. Hillsborough County Administrator Mike Merrill alerted Hillsborough County Commissioners of the newest sinkhole, which …
Two days of carefully orchestrate demolition work ended March 4 at 240 Faithway Drive in Seffner, where the Wicker family lived for almost 40 years. Sinkhole victim Jeffrey Bush lost his life there Feb. 28.
The home that Leland Buddy Wicker bought in 1974 in Seffner no longer stands, after two days of carefully orchestrated demolition that returned to the Wicker family as much of their treasured possessions as possible. Wicker and one of his four children, Wanda Carter, took notice of such as the demolition work continued March 4 at around 12:30 p.m. 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 …
Sunday, March 3, 2013
The first order of business was to remove, and fold respectfully, the American flag that hung at the entrance to the home at 240 Faithway Drive, where Jeffrey Bush lost his life Feb. 28, swallowed by a sinkhole.
The house at 240 Faithway Drive met its end this morning, Sunday, March 3, as the first swipes of its destruction got under way at around 8:30 a.m. As promised, the first order of business was to remove as many personal belongings, mementos and artifacts as possible, for the family to sort through from a safe distance. Hillsborough County Administrator Mike Merrill said officials told the family that every attempt would first be made to remove "any valuables or other things they [might] want to keep." "Once we start touching the building we don't know whether parts of it will start crumbling of all over," he added. Minutes later, the answer was at hand, as the backhoe operator deftly removed the furnishings of what apparently was a front…
Saturday, March 2, 2013
Demolition will begin as early as tomorrow morning, March 3, at 240 Faithway Drive in Seffner. The homes on either side of the sinkhole-stricken home have been deemed unsafe for habitation as well, said Hillsborough County Administrator Mike Merrill.
The news turned from somber to grim for the family of Jeffrey Bush, who heard in the later afternoon March 2 that the mission at 240 Faithway Drive in Seffner had shifted from one of search and rescue to one of impending demolition. Tragedy struck around 11 p.m. Feb. 28, when Bush, asleep in the back bedroom, awoke to the horror of being consumed by the earth. The sinkhole that caused his death has been described as "unprecedented," "extremely large" and "extremely unstable." "We haven't been able to locate Mr. Bush and for these reasons the rescue mission is being discontinued," Hillsborough County Administrator Mike Merrill announced to the public at the March 2 press conference, which began at around 5 p.m. Family members had been …
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue was getting set to announce that a third house in the Seffner sinkhole area has been deemed unfit for human occupation. Spokesperson Ronnie Rivera said the family has been made aware of the finding.
The impact of the growing sinkhole in Seffner is spreading, with the announcement of a third 'compromised' house set to be made, according to Ronnie Rivera, a spokesperson with Hillsborough County Fire Rescue. Rivera said in a phone interview shortly before 2 p.m. that the family to the east of 240 Faithway Dr. has been informed of the finding, made necessary because of the worsening conditions. An announcement to the media on site was set to be made shortly, he added. Earlier today, the family to the west of the Wicker home at 240 Faithway Dr., had been told their house was compromised. "They had 20 to 30 minutes to get some of their belongings," he said. "They did it already and they cannot go back into the house." In between the two …
Deputy Douglas Duvall, a five-year veteran of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, spoke March 1 at 240 Faithway Drive in Seffner. He is credited with saving the life of Jeremy Bush, who made a desperate attempt to save his brother, Jeffrey.
The only thing Deputy Douglas Duvall knew when he arrived at 240 Faithway Drive in Seffner on Feb. 28 is what he had heard from his dispatcher, that "somebody was trapped under a house." "The family was outside, everybody was upset," said Duvall, a five-year veteran of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, at an early evening press conference March 1 near the sinkhole-plagued home in Seffner. "I entered the house, really didn't know what was going on," he added. "I went into the hallway, and when I turnd into the bedroom, the only thing that I saw was a hole." He also witnessed the heroics of Jeremy Bush, 34, who had jumped into the hole moments earlier in a fervent rush to aid his brother, Jeffrey Bush, 36, who, according to his …
Friday, March 1, 2013
An early evening press conference March 1 at 240 Faithway Drive in Seffner did not bear good news for family members and neighbors of Jeffrey Bush. The "unprecedented" sinkhole that swallowed the 36-year-old man will continue to grow.
The news was grim for the family and neighbors of Jeffrey Bush, who cried out in distress last night moments before his bedroom collapsed into the ground. At a press conference tonight, March 1, the officials investigating the sinkhole at 240 Faithway Drive in Seffner could only say that the sinkhole was "unprecedented" and extremely dangerous. "We really are just handicapped . . . we really can't do more than just sit and wait," said Hillsborough County Fire Rescue Chief Ron Rogers, addressing a sea of media lined up to hear the early night report. "It's a tough situation and even tougher for the family." Giving his assessment of the situation was Larry Madrid, a recognized sinkhole specialist. "We have determined that it is a sinkhole …
crystal moffitt
12:23 pm on Friday, March 29, 2013
There are 3 families displaced by the sinkhole on Faithway Dr, not 2. The correction is the Wicker, Jaudon & Allen families! more ›