Paducah traffic is restricted along a section of the I-24 downtown business loop due to a developing sinkhole between Kentucky Ave. and Broadway.
Northbound traffic along the 100 block of South 3rd street is diverted to the left-hand lane to allow repairs on the roadway.
John Hodges with the Paducah-McCracken County Joint Sewer Agency says while he hasn’t seen the hole yet it’s ‘not likely larger than a Coke-bottle.’
"Here what happened is a pipe had a hole in it or a leak - it could even be a joint leak where the pipe looks really good but it leaks - and rain water will erode the soil above that pipe into the hole," said Hodges. "And then over the course of time that works its way up to the street. Most of the ones I see are not big enough to cause any problems."
Hodges says this is nothing like sinkholes more prevalent in some Florida streetswhich can swallow cars, but could likely cause some tire damage.
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet officials discovered the void this morning and diverted traffic to prevent it from getting worse.
Hodges says these voids aren’t common and that Paducah spends about a million dollars per year in pipe maintenance.
He says if the hole is under city jurisdiction, it should take about a week to plate over and repair.
Drivers are advised to slow down and use caution near flaggers and maintenance equipment along the section of roadway.
