Growing sinkhole at metro Atlanta apartments has residents stuck with no way to leave

Michele Newell
·2 min read
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A sinkhole that formed earlier this month in one Cobb County neighborhood, has grown much larger after recent heavy rain.

Neighbors told Channel 2′s Michele Newell 70 units at Bentley Ridge Condominiums are impacted, and people who live in the units have no way to drive in or out, including emergency vehicles.

Neighbors and first responders have to use a walkable path to get to the other side.

“Ugh, it’s a bit of a nuisance, I have to park by the mailbox and hike all the way up here,” said Dominic Renner who uses the path to get to his car.

It’s the new norm for Renner and everyone else who lives beyond the fence that surrounds the sinkhole.

“A couple old people live in the back, so they are trying to make it handicap accessible,” said Pedro Oliveira who is a resident.

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“I had a gentleman one morning yelling for help, an elderly man fell about 7:30, before they fixed the path, I had to help him, get ice on his shoulder and help him get up here,” said Renner.

The sinkhole is located on a private road and was not caused by Cobb County infrastructure.

“My concern is mostly us having to pay for the hole. They say the HOA owns the road so us paying towards the HOA will make us pay for it,” said Oliveira.

Channel 2 Action News contacted Bentley Ridge Condominiums but have not heard back. Resident told Channel 2 Action News a security guard is on the property 24/7 and makes rounds throughout the day to make sure that those who are impacted are okay.

Even though the county isn’t responsible for the sinkhole, Channel 2 Action News did receive this statement regarding emergency services. We have sent engineers out several times to look at the situation.  But because this is a private road and the sinkhole was not caused by county infrastructure, we cannot help repair the roadway.”

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“Cobb Fire has put the complex on “fire watch,” which puts residents on notice of a situation that could delay response. The fire department has reached out to the complex to formulate methods to gain temporary access to the portion that is currently inaccessible.  Any crew dispatched to the complex will have the current information and formulate their response accordingly.  Firefighters have reviewed the situation at the complex and discussed the best access methods should there be an incident,” said Ross Cavitt who is the Communications Director for Cobb County.

Cobb’s Community Development has been contacted by an engineering firm that has indicated they will be filing a plan to repair the situation; however at this time, no plan has been filed.

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