Man Swallowed by 'Seriously Unstable' Sinkhole Presumed Dead

Florida sinkholes abound, but the latest has taken a life and officials have called it “seriously unstable.”

An unstable 3-foot sinkhole that swallowed a Florida man Friday, now presumed dead, when a chasm appeared under his bedroom is so unusual, officials have ordered neighbors to evacuate their homes, 

Jeffrey Bush, 36, has not been heard from since about 11 p.m. ET Thursday in Seffner, near Tampa when the hole appeared there. It is feared he has been killed.

“I couldn’t get him out,” his brother Jeremy Bush said. “All I thought I could hear was him screaming for me and hollering for me, but I couldn’t do nothing.”

Jeremy Bush was saved from the hole by Hillsborough County sheriff’s Deputy Douglas Duvall, according to NBC‘s WFLA reported.

Authorities in ended the search Saturday for Jeffery Bush.

Unlike in the monster 9-acre Bayou Corne, Louisiana sinkhole area disaster zone, family members in other Hillsborough nearby houses are only allowed to enter their homes briefly along with emergency personnel to recover belongings, according to Hillsborough County Fire Rescue public information officer Ronnie Rivera.

Some 350 Bayou Corne sinkhole area residents are under a mandatory evacuation although many have remained, thinking that if the methane-bubbling sinkhole area swamps and bayous worsen rapidly, they will have time to get out.