Wednesday, January 20, 2010

gardening turns deadly

This story was original reported as the homeowner falling into a sinkhole in his backyard. That was sad enough, but now we learn that the culprit was actually an old cistern, covered and forgotten about years ago. In all likelihood the homeowner never knew it was there.

Our local Portland, OR, newspaper, The Oregonian, reported that Michael Anthony Zerwas, 57, was gardening in his backyard when the cover collapsed and he fell into the “35-foot-deep, water-filled, brick-lined pit. Once in, there was no way out. If he called for help, no one heard him.”

How very sad. I take the safety of my own garden for granted. Yes, there are earthquakes in this part of the world, and gardening accidents happen, but when you step into your backyard you certainly don’t expect the earth to open and to fall into a 35 foot deep hole. Read the full story, and see a picture of the backyard here.

3 comments:

  1. Oh how horrifying & sad......my heart goes out to his family.

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  2. I agree. This is a sad story that just seems like it could have been prevented!

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  3. Wow! That's just down right scary! One more reason to dig up the whole yard I guess.

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