Florida home where sinkhole swallowed man is demolished
Demolition experts completely demolished a Florida home where a man was swallowed alive by a sinkhole near Tampa last week.
The 30-foot-wide by 50-foot-deep sinkhole opened up under the bed of Jeff Bush, 37, while he slept on Thursday, taking his entire bedroom down with him.
Bush screamed for help as his brother, Jeremy Bush, dived into the crevice determined to help him. But one of the first responders on the scene had to rescue Jeremy from the hole.
Rescuers gave up their efforts to find Jeff Bush, saying the “safety zone” around the hole was just too unstable. Listening devices and a high tech camera passed into the hole by rescuers determined there were no signs of life.
About 5 family members were in the house when the sinkhole opened up Thursday night. They say they heard what sounded like a car hitting the back of the house. Then they heard Mr. Bush’s desperate screams for help.
The sinkhole, which was covered by the house, was not visible to bystanders and the media outside.
Before demolishing the home, a heavy equipment operator used an 80-foot excavation arm Sunday to retrieve items from the home, including a purse, a picture, a Bible, and an American flag that was then presented to Bush’s mother, according to the LA Times.
Also recovered were war medallions and memorabilia that belonged to Bush’s grandfather. But other family photos were clearly seen hanging on a wall as the house was torn down.
Afterwards, the family broke down and cried as they met with the heavy equipment operator.
Neighbors in the houses closest to the sinkhole were given 30 minutes to gather whatever belongings and mementoes they could grab before evacuating their homes.
The state of Florida sits on a system of caverns which are filled with water. As the water rises and falls, the dirt and rock beneath homes becomes unstable over time and gives way. Many of Florida’s lakes were formed by sinkholes.
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65 Responses to “Florida home where sinkhole swallowed man is demolished”
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So are they going to try and recover the body?
@Naija
Any new ABG episodes? I haven’t checked.
How frightening
PRYNN – yes they just wrapped up the season
@PRYN, NO They said it’s not likely he will be found and the sinkhole is too dangerous for emergency personell to even try to do anything.. sad. This is scary to me.
Good Morning Luvn
Oh WOW! Ok.
so his family will not have his body to do a proper farewell???
his family find some peace and comfort through all of this!
I wonder if they wer Covered by ther Policy For that SMH
Good Morning Milky
Sandra…Happy story PLEASE!! It’s already Monday morning, give us some positive motivation please
That’s so sad to see their pictures and things hanging on the wall like that.
Wow
Milky
Ms Diva
LuVn
Najia
@Milky
hey wifey!!!!!
MOrning
NAIJa
Mainy
Milky
THICK VA Chick
Prynn
DIVAAAA
Milky and Prynn…the family had me dang near tears this am at work. I saw em on the news and the brother was falling apart talking bout how he went to go help his brother and he was calling out for him but, he couldnt reach him. So sad…They were saying the demolition crew was tryna demolish the home in a manner that preserved as much personal items as they could.
@diva
good morning wifey!
Naija
Miany
Prynn
Wut
Trend
Pickachu
Miami
Miany
Iscream
LadieLeo
Liberal80s
Bird
Crickett
Naija
ThatVAChick
Pryn
Nakeya_J
BootCampGirl
Unshake
Good Mornting Totally cut and pasted that, thanks Unshake
Milky says:
@diva good morning wifey!
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How was your weekend mami?
@topic – There are no words to describe situations such as this. Will keep the fam in my thoughts and prayers.
@diva – You are tardy my dear. Class has already started and all other roses were accounted for downstairs. If you behave yourself today, you will get a gold star like the other roses!
and 
@sr fam – has anybody seen/heard from Kingstonn? I haven’t seen her font in a clip? What it do, home skillets?
MIANY
LUV N
how was your weekend
VA
DIVA – how was your b-day celebration, what you do?
Milky, Diva, LuVn, Naija
@Pumpkin how you gone cut and paste and most of dem folks in that hello list ain’t even up in here?
you tired though 
Good Morning Diva, PM
(with the secret ingredient…WAKE UP!!)
Diva
PUMKIN
morning 
NaijaGal says:
MIANY
LUV N how was your weekend
VA
DIVA – how was your b-day celebration, what you do?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Naija went to dinner at Pappadeaux and got messed up on that Swamp thing….me and my girlfriends….then we went to have a few more drinks and cut a little rug dancing!!!!! my azz was yawning by 12 midnight!!!!!
Miany says:
Good Morning Diva, PM
Diva (with the secret ingredient…WAKE UP!!)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Much needed Miany…thanks babycakes!!!
@Naija..just read your response downstairs…sooooo what puzzles me is some healthy folk actually marry and agree to raw dawg people they KNOW have HIV?? I mean I understand (partially) Cookies situation cuz she KNOWS Magic is cured but….these othere dum dums out here playing Russian Roulette for a nut, I’ll pray for em
This is so sad. This man was buried alive.
Morning Pumpkin, Diva, Milky, and Miany
@Diva – I know right? Home skillet is stone cold!
@Pumpkin – Chile you a mess! Ratchetness like that gets my mo-to-the-jo going! Wait a minute…..can girls even have mojo? I know they can have mojitos!
This story is some kind of crazy. And from what I heard on the news last night, he is so deep underground that they can never get him out.
From Downstairs
Milky
Unshakeable
PumpkinsMama
and to everyone else I didn’t speak to earlier
@ Diva, I aint try, I succeeded….in bein ratchet
we can have anythang we wanna hunty 
Mojo on, my sista, Mojo on
@ Unshake
@Nakeya
hey mami!!!!!
Unshake
Bird
On Topice this is sad that the family won’t even have a body to bury (no pun intended)
About the insurance coverage, there is a separate sink hole policy you can have but this is covered under regular insurance but it’s so many stipulations that have to be met….they were talking about it last week after this happened. That made me think of the sinkhole policy coverage notice from my mortage company.
PumpkinsMama says:
@ Diva, I aint try, I succeeded….in bein ratchet
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hush gal!!!!
What it do Diva? Glad you enjoyed your bday weekend…Lawd knows I drank enough for you.
Does anyone watch Big Rich Atlanta? I just feel like it’s a whole bunch of undercover racist Sprite mean girls
PumpkinsMama says:
On Topice this is sad that the family won’t even have a body to bury (no pun intended)
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Well they could always put a tombstone over the area of the sink hole. I’m not trying to be funny either!!!!
MIANY – you know dudes are superficial and shallow…as long as she looks good they don’t give a fcuk who they fcuk
LadieLeo says:
What it do Diva? Glad you enjoyed your bday weekend…Lawd knows I drank enough for you.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you Ladie….I didn’t drink too too much!!!! But I was a little lit….I’m glad you were poing it up for me!!!!
GM Bird
@ Diva, I’m glad you enjoyed ur b-day weekend boo
so doe anybody know why Damon doesn’t fcuk with his family anymore???
PumpkinsMama says:
GM Bird
@ Diva, I’m glad you enjoyed ur b-day weekend boo
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
thank you Pumpkin!!!!!
This is sooooo sad
Thoughts and prayers for Jeff Bush and his family
NaijaGal says:
so doe anybody know why Damon doesn’t fcuk with his family anymore???
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Damon Wayans right? I thought I read somewhere where In Living Color is coming back with the family. No?
NaijaGal says:
so doe anybody know why Damon doesn’t fcuk with his family anymore???
_____________
Who’s Damon???
Diva says:
NaijaGal says:
so doe anybody know why Damon doesn’t fcuk with his family anymore???
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Damon Wayans right? I thought I read somewhere where In Living Color is coming back with the family. No?
_________
Oh, I thought that’s who yall was tawkin bout.
Good morning bews!!!!!
& 
Diva….did you misbehave for your birthday? Are the feds looking for you as a result? You know I have to keep my one good eye on you! *looks over diva closely with monacle*
@Pumpkin – That’s cool…..as long as they don’t have alcohol in them. I don’t do spirits. If they don’t make those, I’ll have a virgin daiquiri.
Morning Str8
@Sandrarose what’s up with this virus stuff this morning? We can’t have that ma’am… (((screaming))) FIX IT NOW!
Unshakable says:
Diva….did you misbehave for your birthday? Are the feds looking for you as a result? You know I have to keep my one good eye on you! *looks over diva closely with monacle*
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Diva is always misbehaving 24/7..three hundid sixty-five….shyt they make be looking for me….
@ Diva it got me twice already!!! (virus message) Aunt Sandy wtf???
no words
I wonder what he knew.
That is very sad
This is heartbreaking. I can’t even imagine something like this happening to my family. I mean, if you’re not safe in the confines of your own home, SHEET…then what!?? And then you going to come and tear the damn house down afterwards. Lord had mercy.