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More Clarksville Sinkholes Likely on the Way - Eric Alvarez

204 views · Published 21 May 2014 · 2:15 · Indexed 20 September 2026

Channel: FOX NASHVILLE · 2014 · News & Politics

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CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Families are likely to see more sinkholes like the one under the site of the new Austin Peay University football stadium, a university spokesperson says.

Sinkholes are all too common in northern Tennessee and southern Kentucky, families say.  

Monica Davidson, 24, says she and her two kids almost lost a husband and father to a sinkhole.

"It was out on the 101 highway," Davidson said.  "He was on his motorcycle and he almost hit it.  It was pretty scary."

So why are there so many sinkholes in the area?

Austin Peay spokesperson Bill Persinger says it's because of the limestone that runs underground in the area,.

"As rainwater falls, it collects in certain areas that are usually depressions to begin with," Persinger said.  "That disintegrates the limestone creating a void and eventually that void collapses and that creates a sinkhole."

Persinger says the sinkhole near the site of the new football stadium wasn't a collapse, but an intentional dig-out, and it's not the first.
On campus, you can find what looks like a small crater called "The Bowl" with the letters "AP" in the center

"[It] actually used to be a sinkhole that is remediated years ago," Persinger said.

Persinger says instead of fearing sinkholes, staff and students embrace them.

"When school is in session you see a lot of people out here hanging out studying throwing Frisbees," Persinger said about The Bowl.  "It's a great space and it's just one of the ways we deal with sinkholes around here."

Davidson says the potential danger is all part of life in Montgomery County.

"It makes me nervous but anywhere you go in the US there some kind of natural disaster that's bound to happen," Davidson said.

The stadium is expected to open on schedule next fall, Persinger said.

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